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Ask HN: To Ad or not to Ad?

1 points by nemasu ↗ HN
Greetings!

I'm super torn and would like the insights of the HN crowd.

I just released an app on the Play store last week and so far so good, people like the idea and the service and app seems to be functioning the way it should be ... except for the ad banner I included.

I hate ads like anyone else, so I feel slightly hypocritical, but it doesn't stop me from using a free app (and I've already spent money and a TON of my time). As I see it I have a few options:

1) Leave the ad in (and tell yourself that people don't care so you can sleep better at night).

2) Take the ad out and figure out a different way of monetizing. <-- This will be tricky.

3) Take the ad out and put it back in once the user count is high enough. <-- This is the worst decision in my opinion.

Any suggestions or experiences?

4 comments

[ 3.1 ms ] story [ 26.2 ms ] thread
sharemywin
are you making enough money off the ad to matter? if not take it out. let it grow.
nemasu
That's true, I'm not making any money off the ad because it's a brand new app. I'm just worried that if I add an ad later, people will stop using it. Whereas now, it's already there... dumb way of thinking?
vladmk
Real question: To make money or not to make money? If ads help you make money then do it.
nemasu
Pretty much. I think I'm going to add an option to turn them off in the settings, but leave them on by default. So if you really care, you can turn them off, but most people wont I think. At least that's the new plan for now.