Like many of us, I became increasingly distracted by my phone when more and more often very useful (and other times less useful) apps started taking up space on my phone. So, so many notifications. Is it a message from your mom or Target's weekly ad? Everyone experiences this: you open your phone to do something specific, but end up doing something completely different because of a notification or app icon.
A colleague of mine at Work & Co was going through this as well. He decided to switch to a "dumb" phone. And he was much less distracted by this phone, but he also couldn't use Uber or Lyft, and he had to break his iPod out of mothballs for music… Let’s try treating people like grown-ups. We need our smartphones. They're supercomputers in our pockets. Maps, Lyft, music, banking, communication. So many benefits that aren't inherently distracting.
The question then: could we keep the super computer while reducing the distractions? We correctly believed we could.
We built the Before Launcher around two core innovations.
1: Intelligent notification filtering: Not all notifications are equal. Texts from your mom and work emails are inherently important. Deals from Target and Facebook trying to suck you back… Less so. We built a filtering system that separated good from bad with user customization. Important notifications appeared immediately, just as they normally would. The less important ones, Target's weekly ad for example, were only a swipe away… But you had to be intentional about it.
2: Simplify the interface: We weren't the first, but I think we did it the best. We replaced the cluttered traditional home screen with three simple swipes: left for apps, right for notifications, center for favorites. No visual clutter. No app icons tempting you to open things you didn't intend to.
Our process from idea to production release wasn't innovative, but it was informative. First we needed to prove the concept. This could only be built on Android, if it was even possible. Apple's iOS doesn't allow this level of system access. Our proof of concept showed the Android notification APIs were just flexible enough to make it work.
First, we developed an alpha and tested it ourselves. Starting out, one of my biggest questions was how many features should an app like this have? How much should users be able to customize the interface? After the alpha, we beta tested extensively and learned that even users who wanted less distraction still wanted to be able to change the background of the app, and Android users love icon packs… This seemed fine. So we developed a rubric: treat our users like grown-ups, not addicts. Let's do our best to reduce distractions for them, but let's give them the ability to customize the app, provided the customizations aren't inherently distracting. The design system handled this very well. We were getting good reports from our beta testers.
However, once we launched the app, hard reality set in. Launching software or a website is a little like opening a store in the middle of the forest. No one is going to find you unless you really try. So, I taught myself App Store Optimization through reading, analyzing search patterns, and rigorous A/B testing versions of the app store page. These optimizations helped us reach hundreds of thousands of users organically without paid acquisition. Paid ads cost too much, using them is like paying someone to use the app.
“After feeling digitally overwhelmed, I knew I needed to take control of my phone instead of letting it take control of me. At first I considered switching to a minimalist phone but most of those felt too stripped down. I still wanted a phone that was "smart" when I need it to be. This launcher has turned my phone exactly into that. The home page was thoughtfully designed to include only the essential apps I need for a typical day. The notification filter is genius and helps curb distraction.”
Carl G's review on the app store page
The results were the best part. Users opened their phones 30-40% less than average. We consistently got comments like "Does what it says on the tin." Tens of thousands of people used the app daily. They still do. We were one of Fast Company's Best Apps of 2019.
Sadly, despite the product’s success, the business model wasn't sustainable. Consumer apps on Android face brutal economics. You essentially have to give the app away for free, ruthlessly market and sell user data (which I wasn't willing to do), sell a premium version, or offer a subscription. We started with a premium version and switched to a subscription. But no matter how we sliced and diced the numbers, it wasn't enough.
We had ideas for other apps around phone distraction, including iOS apps, but given the relative success of our app and the challenging economics, I decided to sell. I sold the app to a developer who had helped work on it because he loved the app. He still maintains it. It still lives on and continues to help people focus. Before Launcher: Focus on what matters.