In this episode of In the Pit, we sit down with Laurent, co-founder of FocusTree — a productivity app for students — to break down how he leveraged short-form creator-led content to explode the app to 100,000 downloads in just 15 days.
Laurent shares the tactical, step-by-step breakdown of his viral growth playbook, from sourcing international creators to creating a gamified onboarding experience that hooks users. This is a masterclass in thinking media-first, product-second — and building sticky consumer apps in the TikTok era.
This episode is sponsored by TalentFiber.com — the best way to hire vetted offshore talent that works in your time zone and speaks fluent English.
🔗 Guest Links
⏱️ Timestamps
(1:10) – Intro to FocusTree & hitting 100K+ users in 15 days
(4:37) – The TikTok revolution: why media-led growth works now
(9:09) – From paid ads to creators: 95% drop in CAC
(12:06) – How to source and manage creators outside the US
(16:01) – The key to finding “outlier” creators and winning formats
(22:00) – The origin story: fake product, Reddit post → validated idea
(26:51) – Beating legacy competitors by targeting Gen Z
(30:49) – Onboarding design, SMS > email, and viral loops
(34:53) – Product philosophy: build habits like Strava & Duolingo
(38:28) – Underrated niches, creator research, and reading comments for hooks
💡 Key Takeaways
🔥 Notable Quotes
“You didn’t really study if you didn’t turn on FocusTree.”If you want to win with creators, you need to know your media landscape like the back of your hand.”
— Laurent Boulin
“Our CAC dropped by 95% when we switched from ads to TikTok creators.”
— Laurent Boulin