Case Study
How This Worldwide Language App Tipped the Scales of Social Learning
Heypal topped in the top 20 and top 10 of both IOS and Android/Google Play App stores, and is available in over 48 countries, and had over 90k within weeks on initial launch.
By Jonathan Maxim,
Managing Director at K&J Growth Hackers
About Heypal
HeyPal is a language learning social platform with a unique “instant translation” feature, letting users view posts and content from other countries in the reader’s native language.
It effectively takes the communication barrier away via instant feed translation and lets users meet/learn via private chatting and social feeds similar to Facebook or Instagram. This makes Heypal the first social media app that breaks that learning barrier with casual interaction & conversation with native speakers of the user’s language of choice.
About K&J Growth Hackers
Two seasoned growth marketers united in 2017 to found one of the top growth agencies today, known as K&J Growth Hackers. K&J brings a diverse background of writing for top publications like Forbes & Inc., combined with gritty marketing experience at Fortune 500 companies, as well as expertise in social media virality, press coverage & deep personal networks.
Today, K&J has served over 200 customers ranging from big and small tech companies, government agencies, medical agencies, cutting edge startups, and universities – united all by the pursuit of amazing results.
K & J is headquartered in Los Angeles, CA and Dunedin, NZ. Both teams are composed of 25 worldwide specialists – ranging from sales copywriters, to media buyers, to graphic designers, to data analysts and many more.
Introduction
Heypal wanted to acquire as many users at an efficient cost as possible, hit critical mass (meaning getting many messages and posts per day), and more volume on all KPIs.
An issue that we faced was that the app was not available in the USA yet, so the launch of the IOS app in the US was a crucial test to see if the user base would be as prominent in the states. So, in summary, KPI’s like clicks, sign ups, and user engagement were important metrics that would help us determine the success of the app launch.
Goals
HeyPal approached K&J for help to reach new consumers worldwide in preparation for the official United States App launch (June, 2021). What was the challenge?
Trying to acquire tens of thousands of new installs in the crowded & competitive market space that is Mobile Language Learning. Because HeyPal was still in its early stages, the primary goal was to simply drive users to the app. This way, further developments based on user feedback could optimize the use of the HeyPal app beyond simple translations (eventually lead to developments like paid learning via cryptocurrency, premium memberships, conversation curriculums, and matchmaking for learners + teachers.) HeyPal needed to reach 100k users for its first quarter of IOS launch, before moving forward to further developments including the Android launch.

Actions Taken
K&J developed ads for Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Youtube using Influencer based marketing, location-based creative (ads translated into the target location’s native language), and in-app software development. K&J used tried and true monitoring methods by analyzing KPI patterns & observing app activity on a consistent basis to see user behavior depending on each country.
From this, we developed creative content based on region, language, audience age range and other relevant factors. The result of these language ads drove costs down to $1.61 worldwide. This laid the groundwork for a scalable marketing methodology that could be deployed in two weeks to all geo-markets: South America, France, and the United States just ot start. As well as ad creative, we also produced social media content and shared news stories on their accounts to drive up engagement and interact with audiences.
Heypal officially launched worldwide in mid-June of 2021, and Android/Google Play Stores launched in November of 2021 after raving results. It topped in the top 20 and top 10 of both IOS and Android/Google Play App stores, and is available in over 48 countries, and had over 90k within weeks on initial launch.
Additionally, by using press releases based on user growth, partnerships, investor news, and app store rankings, the hope was to also drive interest in potential investor groups and financial institutions. In turn, content developed by the creative and social media team (as well as the HeyPal social media accounts and representatives interacting with investors & users) was used on the App’s Instagram to initiate conversation and “build hype” for upcoming app updates.
Frank Magliochetti,
CEO Clickstream Corp