"How to find great and original App ideas?" is the most asked question in my DMs. I can tell you, but probably you should start with bad ideas. At least that is how it was working for me.

I have running file for the App ideas and most of them will stay there for ever.

Here is why.

I started to go to climbing gym with my daughter and found that they have climbing wall with bluetooth connection and API to set a climbing path on this wall. They already have an App for it but it is looking dated.

Booms! That's app idea and going to the my App idea file.

I could jump straight to the App development:

• build app to manage lighting on this wall and set random path
• save your best results and paths
• integrate HealthKit and track workouts
• add friends feature and compete with them
• photo and video posts

Wow, sky is the limit! This already looks like 6 months roadmap for the next "Instagram and FaceBook, but for climbers".

As a developer, I would like to open Xcode and start building, but this is time to write idea down and wear product manager's hat.

This climber App idea can be good idea, but it should not be based on 5 minute discussion with random guy in gym and my few months experience. So, it will stay in a list until I will see if I am interested to be in climbing for a long enough time to understand this audience. Perhaps that app is fine, but there are other problems in the niche which are worth solving.

There are many books written on product management and market - product fit problems, but I will give you a short version.

How a good product idea looks like:

- It’s simple to build and you can get it shipped in a months or less.

- You have a major customer insight, you understand something most competitors don’t. Bonus points for talking with your customers.

- You understand where your audience hang out and what marketing channel will get traffic to your product. AppStore search optimisation is important, but you can do much more with direct traffic.

- Last but not least, You are excited about this idea and ready to work on it for 6 months or more without quick results.

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If you don't have App idea list yet, create it today

Challenge your self to write down at least a few app ideas in a week until you spot good one. Even if those are bad ideas, you are training habit to find problems worth solving and eventually you will spot good one in your list. That's the time start building an App.

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This week I published a video on similar topic as well.

​Here it is if you didn't see it yet.​

That's it for today. Keep shipping 🚀

Aivars