Create a content no-code app with gated content behind a sign up in Glide

What is it:

An app that updates the latest news about Arsenal - a football club from England to a community of more than 20.000 fans from Vietnam.

Maker Insight:

"I learned many things about making a nice user interface while doing this, and also automate the flow of data using Google Scripts at the backend!"

What did I learn:

1. Every step you put in front of your users for them to take to get the core value prop the less likely they are to experience your app's core value proposition.

From a UX perspective I learned a different way to structure the bottom sticky nav and use the hamburger menu for additional categories. I thought this was instructing structure and a good approach so that you can still have many categories to offer your users but with Glide you also have the flexibility to structure the bottom sticky nav to better guide your users on what you want the core value prop is of your app. Many times I see Makers put too many nav items in the bottom nav. Thinh does a good job of only using 3 increasing his chances that the user successfully experiences the most valuable part of the app. Home page, chat and of course a value capture mechanism, enabling users to donate to his efforts.

2. Thinh uses a google script on the backend to help with his teams editing automation. Thinh's team gathers all the information for the app, and must translate it into Vietnamese before pushing into the app.

Thinh's team then takes "the script is used in that separate spreadsheet to push the newest translations to the Glide app spreadsheet. I don't want collaborators to work on the same app sheet in case they break anything I set up there". Essentially only allowing him access to the Glide app. This is a great way that his team has automated adding content and allowing async type updates without having to wait on a bottleneck for one person on the team to publish.

3. Allowing users to favorite content to store and come back. Thinh leverages Glide to drive personalization. This personalization is set up when in the app, a user can favorite content to save. When a user favorites the content a sign up flow is triggered inside Glide. This is a great way for any type of content publishers to capture value in their product. It's not enough to get site traffic. In order to reduce the risk in your project, the single best thing you can do is ask for emails and signups. Your email list is worth its weight in gold because you are not at the mercy of a social media algorithym, google or if for some reason Glide is acquired and the app owner shuts the app down, your stored value is in the email list. You can always build your product in another platform. Always be thinking about capturing value. Check out this feature to see how he uses it in Glide.