Most founders chase viral moments. These two figured out something better: how to turn curious browsers into paying customers at triple the rate. In today's recap of our podcast interview, our host Joseph sat down with Asher and Thatcher, the co-founders behind Clear 30.
At the time of their interview, eight weeks ago their addiction recovery app was pulling in a modest $10K a month. Eight weeks later? They've blown past $30K, and they're still climbing even now.
Like every single recap I've done here, they didn't just get lucky. They did what we tell just about every Superwall customer to do. They tested everything. I'm talking about ad creatives that bombed versus ones that converted at three times the rate, onboarding flows that confused users versus ones that led straight to paid subscriptions, and paywall copy that felt pushy versus messaging that actually convinced people to invest in their recovery.
As always, if you haven't seen the interview yet, definitely check it out below:
For now, on to the recap.
Starting point: from zero to $10K
Clear 30 isn't your typical app. It's a science-backed solution built by Asher Hurstman, Thatcher Kloff, and clinical psychologist Dr. Fred Munch. Its goal is to help people quit smoking weed, or at least use it more intentionally. They started as complete beginners in the app world, and that's in their words, not mine.
Through it all, the most difficult part wasn't scaling from $10K to $30K. It was making that first dollar.
Like many founders, they tried everything we talk about here at Superwall and the industry at large. They went to influencers, Reddit, created organic content, and optimized their SEO game. The breakthrough came when they realized something crucial. And, well, it's super obvious but that lesson was...organic growth is hard.
"We know people who've gotten 10 million views on videos and made a thousand bucks," Asher explained. But one lever they realized they had to get right was onboarding. If you can give your onboarding the intention and care it deserves, everything else in your business becomes exponentially easier. Including organic growth.
That's exactly what happened when they shifted to paid ads and started building a real flywheel.
The 85% rule: why the first 5 minutes matter
Here's the stat that changed everything for them: 85% of users decide if they're going to pay for your app in the first 5 minutes. As an aside, that's why we usually recommended showing your paywall after onboarding.
For months, Clear 30 had a valuable app but wasn't conveying that value in those critical first moments. So they tore down the best onboarding experiences they could find. They went to Calm, Headspace, CalAI, you name it. Then, they reverse-engineered what made them work.
The result? An onboarding flow that feels like a conversation, not an interrogation. At the heart of their approach is what they call the "value equation":
Dream Outcome × Likelihood of Achievement ÷ (Time Delay + Effort + Sacrifice)
Every slide, every question, and every piece of copy is designed around this framework. For example, they ask users about their current spending habits. The average user spends $55 per week on weed. Their program costs $30 for an entire year. That contrast is stark, and it's intentional.
The paywall that boosted conversions by 50%
Once onboarding was in a good place, they shifted attention to their paywalls. And, one design change in their paywall boosted conversions from 20% to 30%. That 10% left was critical. The original version showed features in a carousel: peer support, accountability texts, progress tracking. Standard stuff. But it wasn't converting.
The winning version? They completely scrapped the feature showcase and instead outlined what the first seven days of the program would look like. Day by day. Step by step. Instead of saying "here's what you get," they said "here's what we'll do together."
That single change, switching from features to a program preview, boosted conversions by 50%. Same paywall, same products, same everything else. Just a different way of presenting the value.
I think this design tweak also ties back to their "Dream Equation", because it lets people get a sense of their likelihood of achievement. In this case, will I actually change, or remove, my relationship with weed in my life?
Data-driven everything (and the metrics that matter)
The team also tracks everything using Amplitude dashboards. Here are some of the things they like to keep an eye on:
Direct return on ad spend after Apple tax.
Trial starts by channel.
Return on ad spend by platform.
Drop-off rates at every onboarding step.
One critical metric: they can see exactly how long users spend on each question. Their biggest questions, "What do you want to achieve?" and "What triggers you to smoke?" have users spending 20-30 seconds thinking. Most apps would see this as friction and try to speed it up.
But there's almost no drop-off. People are genuinely reflecting on their habits and goals. Which, in the end, that's not friction. It's almost a soft form of commitment.
"Friction isn't necessarily bad," Thatcher explained. "Having good friction where you're sitting on this question for 30 seconds thinking, 'What do I want to achieve?' is really commitment, not only to your product but also to themselves."
Transparency as a growth lever
One counterintuitive move? They tell users upfront that the app costs money. Right in the onboarding, before the paywall, they're transparent about what's coming.
Most apps hide this until the last possible moment. Clear 30 leads with it, then explains why it's worth paying for. As we touched on earlier, they anchor the price against the cost of the user's current habit. If you're spending $55/week on weed, then $30/year for the program feels like a worthwhile investment.
This increased conversion by 3%. It might seem small, but when you have thousands of users flowing through, these incremental gains compound quickly. "If people are really upset and asking why they have to pay for your app after going through your onboarding, you're doing something wrong," Thatcher said.
Small changes, big results
The most striking lesson from Clear 30 is that tiny tweaks can yield massive results. A 3% lift here, a 5% improvement there, it all adds up.
They track metrics like "Can we decrease complaints about our app being paid on social media by 50%?" Because negative sentiment is a signal that something in your funnel is broken.
Their approach to notifications is smart too. Instead of generic "come back to the app" messages, they send personalized SMS updates through Twilio. 95% of people read texts within 5 minutes. But they're careful not to be spammy, they focus on human, personal copy that actually provides value. "Don't be spammy," Asher emphasized. "We spend a lot of time on really hilarious, human, personal copy. It's not some GPT thing that's like 'hey, come to the app now.'"
The onboarding framework (breaking it down step by step)
Let's roll back to the onboarding before we wrap up. From their interview, that seemed to be the big "Aha!" moment. So, here's how they structured things:
Paint the dream outcome: 30 days without weed, mental clarity, $220 saved.
Collect their name: Immediately use it to make the experience feel personal.
Understand their goals: What do they want to achieve with Clear 30?
Show social proof: 81% of users improve mental clarity (tied to their specific goal).
Highlight pain points: How much money they're spending, how they compare to others.
Present the solution: How the program will get them from where they are to where they want to be.
Set clear expectations: Transparent about cost and what happens next.
Every step builds on the previous one. It's not just data collection, it's a carefully orchestrated journey toward commitment. They even show sources and scientific backing throughout to build credibility. Having a clinician co-founder and a grant from the National Institute of Health helps, but presenting that information at the right moments is what converts skeptics.
Wrapping up
The Clear 30 team isn't stopping at $30K. They're exploring partnerships with universities, expanding into B2B markets, and considering additional revenue streams. But the core lesson remains: if you get your onboarding right, everything else becomes easier.
Paid ads become more profitable because your conversion rates are higher. Customer acquisition costs drop because more people stick around. Even your app store reviews improve because users understand the value before they commit.
Focus on the first 5 minutes. That's where 85% of purchase decisions happen. Test everything systematically. Be transparent about costs. Get specific in your messaging, generic appeals get ignored. And remember, small improvements compound. A 3% lift in conversion can translate to serious revenue growth over time.
As always, if you're ready to test your own paywall conversions and see what small changes might unlock big growth for your app, you can get started with a free Superwall account today!