I'll share a few points here. We've sold over 1 million paid apps. We've gotten to 5 million+ app downloads in 4 additional markets. So the approach is based on what worked and what didn't. However, we don't know how to get to 100 million or even 10 million users as we haven't done it yet. So keep that in mind
Our approach is VERY extreme. So it depends on whether you have the resources and persistence to do it
A) The Market Always Wins/Product Market Fit Always Wins
So every possible project you could do, its success will be determined PRIMARILY by whether the market wants your product or not
Everything else doesn't matter
B) So your approach should NOT be
I have a problem. I solved it for myself by building this app. How do I get users for it
It should be
What is a LARGE market which has a strong need that is UNSERVED
completely forget yourself and focus 100% on users who are dying for a product
In your post and responses there is a massive amount of me-centrism i.e. I'm building, I'm trying, I propose, I'm trying, I made, I contacted. I was hoping. I was wondering. I messaged. I was wondering, I could really use
Where is - Customer needs. Customer demands. Team aims. Do you have a team? or you did it all yourself? Where is your designer and tester? even if you did all the coding yourself?
C) If you build the right product, then getting users is automatic
List of 82 people is around 100 times smaller than it needs to be. Probably 1,000 times smaller. You can't derive any worthwhile data from this
1 out of 24. That's too small a sample size
At best, it gives us no information
At worst, it tells us that out of those 24 people only 1 cared about the product enough to sign up
These are such small data points that you can't learn anything from them
D) Yes, Getting Users is Hard
However, you can make it easier by making something people want and which has little to no competition
The old saying - Be First, Be Best, or Have the Most Money
So, are you the first? No, not really
The Best? depends on how good your app and overall service is
Have the most money? Don't know but would be surprised if you were as your marketing plan seems to be 'tell my friends'
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E) Another VERY BIG mistake that lots of creators like developers, artists, musicians, etc make is
thinking their friends and family will boost them
For every 1 musician whose friends and family are going to buy 100 albums and give them a tiny boost at the start, there are 999 musicians whose friends and family won't
That is just not a viable business strategy, not even at the start
F) You should be going where your customers are. some forum where people are looking for a way to do quick events
such as knitting groups that are frustrated they can't meet up, or runner groups or bingo or book clubs
Find where they are and ask them to test your product
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G) I think there is superb value in the people who are telling you that you got some painful feedback right at the beginning, before you had invested half a million and 4 years of your life
Take that feedback to heart
Put this product on hold. You're launching it during a pandemic. It's LITERALLY the worst time to test out such a product
Plus, keep in mind that - YES, you are inviting your users to get Coronoavirus and die or infect their loved ones and they die
This is a SHOCKING amount of lack of consideration for your users
Really, I wrote this for other people. Not for you. You can still benefit from it
Market Always Wins
Have Consideration for the well being of your users. A few companies that don't do that have become very big. However, those are exceptions. Most companies that are very successful provide lots of value to their users and care about their users' well being