Three million views don't make success—100 retained users do
Clicky's founder says what convinced him to go full-time wasn't 3 million views, but ~100 people still using it every day for five consecutive days after downloading. Retention data, not view counts, determines whether a product is worth continuing.
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The argument · tap a timestamp to hear it
Launch is no longer a one-time event
In the past, launches were singular moments—a Hacker News post, Product Hunt, a Reddit board, a TechCrunch or New York Times story. Now traditional media has largely disappeared and users are scattered across algorithmic platforms like X, LinkedIn, YouTube. Founders no longer post once; they continuously produce content. He doesn't call this "launch" anymore; he calls it "demo"—each week asking "what do we demonstrate?" and building backwards from that.
— FarzaSell process, not a polished final product
His publishing philosophy is to show the process of what he's building, not just the finished piece. Polished videos from founders in beautiful offices, shot on DSLRs and carefully edited, flood every feed. He deliberately goes the opposite direction. The reason is simple: the goal of publishing is user acquisition, not looking smart on the internet. To acquire users, you need a channel that reminds people of you continuously, not a pursuit of one perfect moment.
— FarzaRetention matters far more than views
Clicky's first demo video, recorded in five minutes before lunch in the office, hit nearly 3 million views on Twitter. But he says he doesn't care about that number at all. What made him commit to this product full-time was this: after 7,000 downloads, roughly 100 people came back every single day for five days. He reached out to all 100 of them for individual conversations and discovered they were using the tool for things he'd never imagined. These real users, not viral metrics, drove him to turn a side project into a company.
— FarzaYour worst video might become your biggest hit
His videos look casual, but every line is scripted days in advance and rehearsed mentally. He had a video about voice control that he told his filming partner was the worst they'd ever made—not worth editing. His partner insisted on shipping it. The video got 3.8 million views on Twitter. He was shocked. Founders often don't publish because they think what they've made isn't good enough. This is a widespread misjudgment.
— FarzaTwenty-three likes still count as a launch
He pulled up an old ZipSchool video from 2021—rough, no editing skill, no polish. It got 23 likes and one comment. By his definition, that was still a "launch." The company did something new, told the world about it. Only 23 people saw it, but it was out there. This habit of shipping without fixating on metrics is what taught him, over time, how to talk about his product well.
— FarzaViews and conversions are completely uncorrelated
His own data proves it. Twitter, which he's run for ten years, is his worst conversion channel: 3 million views led to only 7,000 downloads. A YouTube video with 19,000–20,000 views converted at roughly 20%. Instagram delivered around 70% of his company's traffic. The lesson: good view counts don't mean a channel works. You have to track the complete funnel from watch to download to signup to see if a channel is actually worth your time.
— FarzaYou should hire the photographer before the engineer
Before founding the company, he decided his first two hires would be a photographer, then an engineer. Here's why: writing code and shipping products are easier than ever. A competitor can copy your features in two minutes. What's hard to replicate is the audience and community energy you build around what you do. If you have people who genuinely care what you're making, a feature video goes out and users flood in. That's the moat every founder wants.
— FarzaRecord ten minutes daily for thirty days straight
He left viewers with a challenge: grab your phone each day, record ten minutes of what you did, post to Instagram or TikTok, do it for 30 days straight. By day 30, there's a good chance one video will hit 1,000 views. Look back at that one, figure out what it got right, apply it to the next. This is the lowest-friction way to start, in his view.
— FarzaIn their own words · checked verbatim
My philosophy for most launches now is to show the process of what I'm doing instead of just showing the final result.
Farza5:04
I don't care about traffic at all. The views look great and people are welcoming, but what are the real numbers?
Farza7:04
Most people only see the first 3 seconds when they scroll through a feed.
Farza9:05
The worst thing is to be in front of the camera and think, "Oh, what am I supposed to say?"
Farza11:05
Twitter is our worst channel, although I've been creating content there for about 10 years
Farza31:06
My first two hires—I knew this from the beginning, even before the company was founded—were going to be: first, a cinematographer , and second, an engineer.
Farza39:07
The most important thing about any video you make, whether it's a bad Loom or some crappy video or an iPhone recording, is the sound quality. If your sound is bad, I'm just going to walk away.
Farza41:07
Figures
| Clicky's first demo video views (Twitter) | ~3 million | 7:04 |
| Clicky's first demo video downloads | ~7,000 | 7:04 |
| 5-day retention users from downloads | ~100 | 7:04 |
| ZipSchool's first launch video likes | 23 | 18:05 |
| Voice control demo video views (Twitter) | ~3.8 million | 37:07 |
| Instagram's share of company traffic | ~70% | 32:06 |
| Screen Studio software price | ~$30 | 41:07 |
Glossary
- hook
- The opening seconds of a video designed to capture attention and prevent viewers from scrolling past.
- demo-driven development
- Building features in reverse: first decide what you'll demonstrate, then develop to support that demonstration.
How to listen
Early-stage founders aiming to drive product adoption through short-form video rather than expensive marketing films, especially those unfamiliar with channel selection and conversion funnels.
The middle section on filming equipment (Screen Studio, Sony FX3, etc.) has limited practical value for non-video teams.