Why wouldn't you use this app?
Hello IndieHackers!
I've been making Dose for some time now. It's far from being fully finished, but I think it can already provide some value. I want to attract more users, and I'm reaching out to you guys for some feedback.
Please have a look at https://doseapp.io and tell me why it sucks. Be brutally honest!
Can you tell what the app does? Why wouldn't you use it? What can be changed to make you more interested? How can I make it easier for you to use it regularly?
I wouldn't use it unless you can better prove the value of tracking your usage for the standard healthy-user adult.
I consume coffee, alcohol, other etc but I would say I do so at a healthy "normal" level. So what reason do i have to track? Especially if I have no desire to lower/limit/stop my usage.
Most people don't realize they overdo something unless they can see it visually.
Even if you use these substances at a "normal" level, you sometimes end up doing too much by accident. Be it drinking a little too much at a party, or brewing an extra coffee that exceeds your maximum recommended daily dose of caffeine. You should be able to see these occasions, acknowledge why they happened and try to prevent them in the future.
Thanks for the suggestion, I will try to inform users why it's important.
I see your point and I think you should definitely add something to that effect somewhere on the landing page.
But if i'm being honest I still wouldn't use it. Because you could say the same thing about all habits. But I don't want to constantly track coffee intake, TV time, time on phone, time golfing etc just in case I start to notice a negative trend. For me personally, I would only start tracking something after it becomes an issue.
But good luck! I am sure there are a lot of people not like me in that regard.
Hey there.
I actually built something very similar, mostly for learning some front-end stuff.
Yeah, I stopped using it. because there's no motivation to keep adding your "doses" as you use them :D
Hello!
Maybe some kind of achievements/badges will fix that? Or weekly/monthly reminders to check-in, telling why it's important to stay consistent?
People don't use an app for virtual, useless, achievements. They want real-life, useful results. If people really wanted to track their intakes, they would have already done so with pen and paper.
I get it, but gamification should improve user engagement a little. Of course I have to make the user interested by telling them the benefits first.
Yes, gaminification helps, but only if you gamify something that already is valuable for the user. I wouldn't care if I got an achievement like "Breathe 200 times today!".
Hi Jmichal.
I use your app and love it! I like to keep track of what the different buds and oils, etc. do to me on a given day.
I'm basically new to smoking and trying to learn so this app helps.
I use the notes to describe how I felt and why or why didn't the hit worked.
To make it better:
Thanks!
Hey, thank you for your kind feedback! I like your ideas, I will see what can be done.
I don't do drugs, but sometimes drink alcohol. The question is why would I use it? What problem does it solve? My body knows itself when I drink too much, I don't need an app to tell me that. I also never got to use apps where I have to continously enter data, as it becomes tiresome. Plus, if I get drunk, entering each glass in the app is the last think I would want to do.
Thanks! Would you be more interested if I proved that tracking recreational drug usage is important, and my app is a better alternative to a piece of paper?
If you convince the user that it is important, the app can then be useful for that user. You have to also consider if your app is really better than using a piece of paper, what are the advantanges of disadvantages of paper vs app.
I agree with those who say it looks good. My first reaction is that it is designed to appeal to the rational self, however real behavioral change needs an emotional drive. Its the elephant vs the rider problem described by the Heath brothers in their book Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard. Find a way to harness the user's emotions.
Thank you for the suggestion!
Great brand, great design, and great product. I use Less, which is similar. What I like is that it is just a tool, and completely free of judgement.
Thank you! Everyone is unique, has different tolerance and past. I wanted to let everyone judge for themselves.
Less is a very good app but focuses only on Alcohol. Dose allows users to track everything in one place. I know a few psychonauts and illicit drug users who can now experiment safely and track everything in one app.
Hi, it looks cool! I like the interface.
You could add a pre, during, and post consumption log. Some people might like to track their experiences.
Also, estimate price per consumption and have a running “consumption cost”. That mapping might wake them.
Hey, thanks for your feedback!
What do you mean by a "pre, during, and post consumption log"? Users can attach a note to every entry, and set a price so the total spent shows up on the substance screen.
I started using apps to track water/coffee consumption multiple times, but ended up giving up after a week or two. No incentive to do it, I guess.
I imagine some people could be antsy about recording their consumption of weed or alcohol, given the stigma associated w/ it? (or paranoia about being tracked, etc)
Thanks for the feedback! I'm going to add some info on how we protect the data, and maybe add some quotes, achievements/badges or streaks to make the user more engaged.
Hi,
First of all, great design, I think the app looks great.
My number once concern would be the fact that personal drug use (especially ones that are illegal in some places) are sensitive personal information, I'd imagine users would want some more details about how/where their data is stored, what data security practices are in place. Is data stored on device or in the cloud? If it's in the cloud is it end to end encrypted, can you demonstrate that?
The Track, Analyze, Set Goals sections are a bit wordy, maybe try to use some more icons in that section as it is "above the fold" of your landing page design.
I'm curious as to why you were able to publish as a native app for Android through Google Play but had to go the PWA route for iOS, can you share more details about that? IMO, PWAs are a very immature and unstable tech, it is probably worth overcoming the App Store issues to deploy a native iOS app.
Hey, I really appreciate your feedback!
User data is stored locally and can be secured with a PIN code. I'm going to add a syncing across devices feature in a way that's secure and encrypted. I forgot to mention it anywhere on the website, thanks for pointing it out.
I'll try to make the landing page a bit more visual, so it can show the app better.
Apple didn't like that it fetched all resources from my server and included a link that was against the rules. I'm working on a proper iOS app and it should be available on the App Store within a few weeks.
Hey @jmichal
I absolutely love your app and use it every single day... But since a few days its not working anymore.. Just tells me that the link cant be found... doseapp.io is sadly also down... What happenend? Any chance you can fix it?
Hello!
Our domain name (doseapp.io) expired, causing an outage of the website, push notifications not being sent, and even making the app unavailable for some people.
I attempted renewing the domain over a week ago, but my Namecheap account got blocked because of "suspicious activity". I contacted their support, but they haven't replied yet.
I am extremely sorry for the inconvenience, and I'll try fixing this as soon as possible.