TIL: The app is the thing, the site is a bonus...
People like apps. Especially free ones. It's relatively easy to get someone to have a look at a new app. Sadly, websites seem to be much less exciting.
When I created Pixfor I had the idea that people would use the website to create their album, then get their friends and family to download the Pixfor app and because it had come as a request from the album owner, they would get the app and use it.
It's become apparent that it's much easier to get people excited by an app. But with Pixfor, the app is a second class citizen unless you have been asked to take photos for someone's album. On it's own it seems limited and pointless probably because it is.
So my task now is to make the app both more welcoming in its blank state (having just started it up for the first time), and possibly more importantly, to make the app more stand alone.
Signing up in the app already creates a Pixfor account capable of logging into the site and creating an album, but in a coming update you will be able to create a new album right in the app. You'll also be able to share that album with friends and encourage them to join in by downloading the Pixfor app for themselves.
I am also hoping to put off forcing people to sign up until they actually try and join someone else's album or create one of their own. Getting in to the app and having a look around really shouldn't require forking over your email address :)
This is a learning process for me and I hope anyone that has given Pixfor a shot will stick with me and help me make it better. Feel free to contact me at any time and make suggestions or give feedback. For instance, how do people feel about those "sign up with Facebook" or "Sign up with Twitter" options? Is that more attractive than using an email address and a password?


















