The free tier of my app stops at 10 people. Not 10 as a trial size that quietly grows later. 10 as the actual point.
It is built around a small handful of people, so the number is supposed to be the message, not the gate. It is called Kinu, and I am launching it in a couple of weeks.
Here is what I keep going back and forth on. Normally you pick a free limit to nudge people toward paying, and yes, I did that too. But this same number is also a product statement. One person reads 10 and thinks, right, that is the idea, keep it small. The next reads 10 and thinks, founder put a wall here to squeeze me. Both reads are fair, and I do not get to pick which one a stranger sees first.
Kinu is where you keep what you notice about people: birthdays, gift ideas, the new job a colleague mentioned over coffee. When it's been a while, a gentle reminder brings someone back to mind. No pipelines, no feed, no streaks. What you save is encrypted before it leaves your device. Free is the complete app with room for 10 people, no card and no time limit, on iPhone, Android or in a browser. Kinu Plus adds unlimited people and encrypted sync.
