Hi HN. I poured months into making a mobile app called Codala, but sadly, it's getting practically zero downloads. I have no marketing budget at all.

I'm starting to question if the app is just bad, but the core idea feels solid to me: you scan any QR code or barcode, and it opens up a space to chat, leave reviews, and discuss that specific product or place.

I know the app needs users leaving comments to feel alive, but it's been 3 weeks and things are dead quiet. If you want to take a look, I’m totally open to any feedback or honesty.

It's only available on Google Play for now

A popular way of gaining some traction in the SaaS world is to own a high intent keyword and then spreading from there. Social Networks must work similarly with owning one specific audience. Think super niche, like a kitchen appliance review community or something like that. If you can own a community you can own another. Marketing is basically like shouting into the void because new users will feel compelled by existing users but if there are none, the value prop of the app is weaker.

Still a better social network than Moltbook.

More serious comment: would be so much better if I could check it out without having to download an app on my phone

Slashdot/Reddit/Facebook etc all build communities, when they get too large they splinter until they become increasingly specific. You've done the opposite. I think you are going to need to group common products, then gradually break it out. ie, food -> deserts -> cakes -> chocolate cake -> chocolate cake from <shop> etc

Not a bad idea, seems like data that would be be easy to monetize if it took off.

Reminds me of those Skannerz toys from when I was a kid! It was a device you could scan any barcode with and you would get some monster from it and could collect and battle with them. Kind of like Pokemon with barcodes.

Build it and they won't know it exists until you tell them!

I think some small adjustments could reduce friction to new users. Let people scan and read comments anonymously, group similar product discussions together until volume increases, and look up UPCs instead of asking people to enter what they just scanned.

I'll be candid: reeks of a gimmick. I think people will see it as such.

Once, or even if it gets some adoption, it will be filled in with ai-generated crap or abused in other ways directly via api.

That's for later, now you need to answer who is your audience is and why the target audience has to adopt this app.

Why did you build this app?

I'd be more interested in commenting on UPCs.

It's only been 10 days. What marketing activities have you undertaken so far?

You can't just publish an app and expect users. Those days are long over.

Hello, I suggest on having it available via the web version in the future as well and if you are open to it, then open sourcing it as well.

This can do some wonders for a review app.

Books also have bar-code so it can also work as something like scan the book's barcode and then review the book or find community which talks about the book (I am imagining then an discord/telegram/whatsapp like interface where people can chat too)

So we scan bar code of a book, then we can join a channel where people can just talk live and make connections from the book.

This will definitely have people who are fed up of social media as-is and want something more niche but unique/authentic so its kind of good on that ground!

A bit tangential but actually I have a domain which I bought called k4qr.com, you mention that qr codes also work, so perhaps you can rename the app as Kodala (with a K) and I am happy donating my domain to you as well for your project, let me know! (funny story but I was actually wondering myself when I had bought that domain if I should do something qr related with that :-] )

Actually another thing but also allow text as input too for web related things for example. I am imagining what I might want to use your product for example.

So I go to your website and just write something say game of thrones and it can show some books or tv show qr code which anybody has scanned and I can click on any of that too and then I can land in their social media and talk about game of thrones

Now you can also do it for something niche with qr codes, perhaps have an optional field, tags etc. that people can enter into qr codes when they first scan it so that people can search them

Just a few suggestions that I have, hope any of them might help you in a meaningful way.

Have a nice day.