Over 12+ years in mobile marketing I've worked with hundreds of products and teams at different growth stages. We've taken apps to the top charts in different countries, tested dozens of hypotheses, and more than once walked away from decisions that seemed obviously right at the start.
That experience taught me that an app's success depends on more than just product quality and how much traffic you buy. Growth happens where a team knows how to learn fast: listens to users, looks at the data, changes the product, and doesn't try to endlessly defend the first version of its idea.
I join mobile projects as a strategist, partner, and growth expert. I help teams see the connection between product, marketing, unit economics, the team, and entering new markets.
I choose projects carefully. Not because I'm looking for "perfect" startups, but because working together should create a real opportunity for sustainable scale. Below are the criteria I use to understand whether we can be useful to each other.
That experience taught me that an app's success depends on more than just product quality and how much traffic you buy. Growth happens where a team knows how to learn fast: listens to users, looks at the data, changes the product, and doesn't try to endlessly defend the first version of its idea.
I join mobile projects as a strategist, partner, and growth expert. I help teams see the connection between product, marketing, unit economics, the team, and entering new markets.
I choose projects carefully. Not because I'm looking for "perfect" startups, but because working together should create a real opportunity for sustainable scale. Below are the criteria I use to understand whether we can be useful to each other.
Growth happens where a team knows how to learn fast: listens to users, looks at the data, and changes the product.
An author's column by Eduard Lebedev, founder of WakeApp and mobile growth partner
Who I Work With and How I Choose Projects
Author's column / Mobile growth
ready to pivot
04
works from data
03
ships fast
02
understands the product
01
people in a strong technical team
5–20
My ideal partner isn't a lone visionary trying to cover every function alone, but a strong technical team. Usually that's a team of five to twenty people who deeply understand the product and can make changes fast — not just add features, but rebuild user flows and product logic based on data.
I'm comfortable working with teams that build a complex product, hold a high quality bar, and are ready to discuss changes constructively — including pivots, if the original hypothesis doesn't hold up.
I don't expect founders to build out marketing on their own from day one. What matters more to me is this: the technical team needs to be able to implement data-backed decisions quickly and well.
I'm comfortable working with teams that build a complex product, hold a high quality bar, and are ready to discuss changes constructively — including pivots, if the original hypothesis doesn't hold up.
I don't expect founders to build out marketing on their own from day one. What matters more to me is this: the technical team needs to be able to implement data-backed decisions quickly and well.
A strong technical team matters more than a lone visionary
01
retention
MONETIZATION
onboarding
positioning
What can change
Change isn't chaos if every iteration has a hypothesis, a success metric, and a pre-defined decision for what happens if the result falls short.
I'm especially interested in teams that build their own product, quickly ship an MVP, and are ready to methodically test the business model. At an early stage it's normal for a team to change its entry point several times: from one narrow user scenario to a clearer, more valuable, and more scalable problem.
For example, today the team is building a chatbot-psychologist for conversational support, and tomorrow they realize users aren't coming back just for the conversation. They need a specific outcome: managing anxiety, improving sleep, keeping a mood journal, or sustaining a helpful habit.
At that point it's not just the features that change, but positioning, onboarding, the monetization model, and retention mechanics too. After a few iterations it may turn out the product needs a narrower scenario or, conversely, a broader platform.
The most productive work starts once a product already has its first users and enough data for meaningful decisions. That could be a demand signal, a first stable retention pattern, an understanding of monetization, or the ability to quickly test it. That's when marketing becomes a tool for managed growth.
For example, today the team is building a chatbot-psychologist for conversational support, and tomorrow they realize users aren't coming back just for the conversation. They need a specific outcome: managing anxiety, improving sleep, keeping a mood journal, or sustaining a helpful habit.
At that point it's not just the features that change, but positioning, onboarding, the monetization model, and retention mechanics too. After a few iterations it may turn out the product needs a narrower scenario or, conversely, a broader platform.
The most productive work starts once a product already has its first users and enough data for meaningful decisions. That could be a demand signal, a first stable retention pattern, an understanding of monetization, or the ability to quickly test it. That's when marketing becomes a tool for managed growth.
Early teams and MVPs: still searching for the model
02
NICHE AND SCALE POTENTIAL
CONNECTION WITH TEAM
BUSINESS AND KEY METRICS DIAGNOSTICS
I usually pass on projects in niches that are too narrow, with a short user lifecycle — especially when the team doesn't see a path to retention, repeat monetization, or product expansion.
Even a strong team and a polished interface don't always make up for limited demand.
It's better to see that risk honestly at the start than to pour resources into scaling a model that had little room to grow to begin with.
Even a strong team and a polished interface don't always make up for limited demand.
It's better to see that risk honestly at the start than to pour resources into scaling a model that had little room to grow to begin with.
Sometimes they show that before scaling traffic, the product, retention, or business model needs work first.
02
Sometimes the diagnostics reinforce confidence in the project.
01
What the diagnostics show
3. BUSINESS AND KEY METRICS DIAGNOSTICS
Before starting work I look beyond install counts or total revenue. It matters to understand who comes back on day 30 and day 90, how monetization is structured, how long it takes for acquisition costs to pay back, whether users get repeat value, and which channels can be scaled without hurting the economics.
I also look at which strengths the product can already lean on, where the critical gaps are, and which growth hypotheses the team is able to test in the near term.
Before starting work I look beyond install counts or total revenue. It matters to understand who comes back on day 30 and day 90, how monetization is structured, how long it takes for acquisition costs to pay back, whether users get repeat value, and which channels can be scaled without hurting the economics.
I also look at which strengths the product can already lean on, where the critical gaps are, and which growth hypotheses the team is able to test in the near term.
2. CONNECTION WITH TEAM
We need to genuinely understand each other. Otherwise every decision risks turning into a drawn-out argument, and the pace of the work slows down.
It matters to me that the team can look honestly at numbers and changes — not search for confirmation of a decision already made, but work together to figure out what's actually happening with the product, the funnel, and the audience.
I always ask a lot of questions. To me, questions aren't criticism or an attempt to control the founder. They're a way to get to the root of a problem quickly and find a solution.
We need to genuinely understand each other. Otherwise every decision risks turning into a drawn-out argument, and the pace of the work slows down.
It matters to me that the team can look honestly at numbers and changes — not search for confirmation of a decision already made, but work together to figure out what's actually happening with the product, the funnel, and the audience.
I always ask a lot of questions. To me, questions aren't criticism or an attempt to control the founder. They're a way to get to the root of a problem quickly and find a solution.
1. NICHE AND SCALE POTENTIAL
The niche needs to be big enough for the product to become a notable player, rather than run into limited demand. I lean toward B2C verticals with a recurring user need: health and fitness, entertainment, productivity, utilities, e-commerce.
Market size alone isn't enough, though. I look at whether the product has a clear reason for users to come back: repeat sessions, room to grow a subscription, a transactional model, or long-term value for the audience.
The niche needs to be big enough for the product to become a notable player, rather than run into limited demand. I lean toward B2C verticals with a recurring user need: health and fitness, entertainment, productivity, utilities, e-commerce.
Market size alone isn't enough, though. I look at whether the product has a clear reason for users to come back: repeat sessions, room to grow a subscription, a transactional model, or long-term value for the audience.
I don't join every product that comes to me. Over time I've settled on three filters that tell me whether the work will be useful — both for the team and for the product.
Three filters: niche, connection, audit
03
For senior managers, equity and a long horizon are sometimes a better fit than a high salary right now.
Senior management
The sales assistant's incentive depends on how quickly and well they take operational tasks off the manager's plate.
Assistant
Sales gets a bonus from client profit.
SALES
The designer gets a bonus for creative work that delivered a measurable result.
DESIGNER
Everyone has their own area of ownership, a key KPI, and transparent incentives.
If work takes up most of your life, you want it to be enjoyable. I don't want to be somewhere that drains my energy — and that applies to both projects and teams.
I'm not a fan of managing through constant pressure, office politics, and "games of thrones." Instead, I build a system where everyone has a clear area of ownership, a key KPI, and transparent incentives.
Incentives should be tied to the outcome a person actually influences. What matters most is agreeing honestly on what the person wants to get and what time horizon works for them.
I'm not a fan of managing through constant pressure, office politics, and "games of thrones." Instead, I build a system where everyone has a clear area of ownership, a key KPI, and transparent incentives.
Incentives should be tied to the outcome a person actually influences. What matters most is agreeing honestly on what the person wants to get and what time horizon works for them.
How I work with people inside a team
04
AI / MOBILE
E-COMMERCE
UTILITIES
PRODUCTIVITY
ENTERTAINMENT
HEALTH & FITNESS
My main focus right now is B2C mobile products in health & fitness, entertainment, productivity, utilities, and e-commerce. Repeatable usage patterns give a product a chance to become a habit rather than a one-time install.
I also keep a separate eye on products at the intersection of AI and mobile services. I'm interested in AI not as a marketing add-on, but as part of the user's everyday experience.
I have experience working in markets across Europe, the US, and Brazil, plus cases in parts of Asia and Africa. Each region has its own consumer habits, payment methods, trust in subscriptions, mobile data costs, competitive landscape, and store behavior. All of that affects conversion, retention, and the product's economics.
When entering international markets, I often think less in terms of countries and more in terms of language clusters. First we localize the product, test a few language versions, and see where conversion is higher, retention is better, and unit economics are more stable.
Only then does it make sense to go deeper into a specific market: adapting messaging, payment flows, creatives, and the product to the local context.
This approach gets you data faster and avoids committing too early to heavy organizational decisions — like opening a local team or building expensive infrastructure before demand is confirmed.
I also keep a separate eye on products at the intersection of AI and mobile services. I'm interested in AI not as a marketing add-on, but as part of the user's everyday experience.
I have experience working in markets across Europe, the US, and Brazil, plus cases in parts of Asia and Africa. Each region has its own consumer habits, payment methods, trust in subscriptions, mobile data costs, competitive landscape, and store behavior. All of that affects conversion, retention, and the product's economics.
When entering international markets, I often think less in terms of countries and more in terms of language clusters. First we localize the product, test a few language versions, and see where conversion is higher, retention is better, and unit economics are more stable.
Only then does it make sense to go deeper into a specific market: adapting messaging, payment flows, creatives, and the product to the local context.
This approach gets you data faster and avoids committing too early to heavy organizational decisions — like opening a local team or building expensive infrastructure before demand is confirmed.
Which markets and niches interest me right now
05
First — a willingness to play the long game. The cycle between product and marketing rarely fits into a month: you need to form a hypothesis, change the product, bring in users, watch their behavior, and only then make the next decision. That can take a year, two, sometimes longer. If a team is counting on instant payback and isn't ready to go through that cycle, our expectations probably won't match.
Second — a willingness to make decisions based on data. For me, strategy is a living direction, not text carved in stone. Sometimes it's better to admit the original bet didn't work and save resources for the next hypothesis than to spend months defending the first pitch deck.
Third — open dialogue. I ask a lot of questions, because that's the fastest way for me to understand the context, the constraints, and the real cause of a problem. If a team takes questions as personal criticism, or isn't willing to share important data, it will be hard for us to work together. Partnership requires transparency on both sides.
Second — a willingness to make decisions based on data. For me, strategy is a living direction, not text carved in stone. Sometimes it's better to admit the original bet didn't work and save resources for the next hypothesis than to spend months defending the first pitch deck.
Third — open dialogue. I ask a lot of questions, because that's the fastest way for me to understand the context, the constraints, and the real cause of a problem. If a team takes questions as personal criticism, or isn't willing to share important data, it will be hard for us to work together. Partnership requires transparency on both sides.
Partnership requires transparency on both sides.
Open dialogue
03
Strategy is a living direction, not text carved in stone.
Decide from data
02
The cycle between product and marketing rarely fits into a month.
Play the long game
01
What I expect from a founder at the start
06
On these kinds of projects, I'm not an ad vendor — I'm a growth partner. My job is to build a system where the product, marketing, key metrics, and the team reinforce each other.
— want to build a sustainable growth system around the product, not just increase install numbers.
— discuss economics, risks, data, and mutual expectations honestly;
— are ready to play the long game, look beyond buying traffic, and aren't afraid to rebuild their hypotheses;
— have a strong technical foundation and can test product changes quickly;
— build mobile B2C products in large niches with long-term user value potential;
To sum it up, I'm especially interested in teams that:
Who I'm the right fit for
07