Questions · Published
I built an app with Lovable. Now what?
TL;DR
Stop adding features and find out who'll pay for it. Put what you've built in front of five people who have the problem, watch what they do with it, give it a price and ask at least one of them to pay. What they do tells you what to build next, or whether to change direction.
Getting an app working with Lovable, Bolt, v0 or Claude Code is a real achievement, and it's exciting. It's also the point where the most important questions start: who is this for, will they pay for it, and how will you reach them?
Stop adding features, for now
When building is this easy, there's always one more feature to add, and each one feels like progress. But features only help once you know who you're building for. A growing app can feel like a growing business while you've learned nothing about whether anyone will pay. I call this the Product Illusion, and AI tools make it easier than ever to fall into.
So pause the building, and use what you've made as a test.
Find five people who have the problem
Look for five people who fit your customer and have the problem you're solving. Start with people you know through work, then find a couple from outside your network.
Watch what they do with it
Show them the app, then mostly listen and watch. Before you show it, ask about the problem itself: when did it last happen, what did they do about it, what did it cost them? Then let them use the app. Notice where they get stuck, what they ignore and what they ask about.
Pay more attention to what they do than what they say. "That's cool" is polite. Asking when they can use it with their team, or sending you their own data to try, is a real signal.
Give it a price, and ask
Put a real price on it, even a rough one, and ask at least one person to pay. If it isn't ready for everyday use, offer to set it up and run it for them while you finish it:
It's [£49 a month]. I'm only taking on [three] [customers] to start with, and I'll [set it up for you myself]. Would you like to be one of them?
A payment, or a signed letter of intent, shows someone has accepted your offer, which is a big step. Whether they get the outcome and keep paying is what you learn next. See how to know if people will pay, and when you're ready to take payments in the app itself, how to charge for your Lovable app.
Then decide what to change
Compare what happened with what you expected:
- If people have the problem and pay, deliver what you promised, watch whether they keep using it, and build what they need next.
- If they have the problem but won't pay, look at your price, your promise, or whether you're talking to the person who controls the budget.
- If they don't have the problem, change who it's for, or the problem you're solving, before you build anything else.
It's much cheaper to change your app now, while it's small, than after months of adding features nobody asked for. The guide to starting a software business walks through the whole process, from your first guesses to your first paying customers.