In this video I walk you through my actual workflow for designing mobile apps as an indie iOS developer. Design matters way more than most people think, because the first impression isn’t what your app does—it’s how it feels. Colors, fonts, spacing, and tiny UI details get judged subconsciously, and those details decide if someone stays through onboarding and eventually converts… or just uninstalls and you lose a sale. Before I touch Figma, I always start with research. I used to painfully download competitor apps, screenshot everything, and try to map flows myself (honestly, a never-ending mess). Now I use Mobbin as a library of real app screenshots and flows, so I can quickly study patterns like onboarding, navigation, checkout, and paywalls—without copying, but by understanding why certain UX decisions work. Then I build wireframes and final UI in Figma (free plan, great collaboration, tons of plugins), and I add animations using Lottie to make the app feel more natural. I also share practical tips I apply in every app: longer onboarding (3–4 screens) to sell value before the user even interacts, a clean paywall with clear trial visibility (my paywall template alone generated $700+ across my apps), haptic feedback to make interactions feel premium, better icon choices, and finally, App Store screenshots that highlight the main keyword and communicate the value fast.