Pebblecourt · Indie note-taking app, solo developer · Bristol
How a solo developer's note-taking app got onto every 'best of' list that mattered
Press start to scroll the level
High score
Listed in 31 'best app' roundups
0-0The challenge
Pebblecourt had loyal users but no coverage, so review roundups and 'alternatives to' searches only ever recommended the big three apps.
Pebblecourt is a one-person note-taking app built in Bristol. Its users stayed for years, but nobody outside that circle had written about it. When someone searched for the best note app or an alternative to one of the giants, the answer came from roundups — and every roundup recycled the same three names.
The job was not to out-rank those publications. It was to get into them: earn the coverage, links and mentions that make an editor confident enough to add a fourth app, then give ‘alternative’ searches somewhere honest to land.
Enemy roster · audit findings
- AuthorityHP 01
22 domains, 14 of them directories
App-store mirrors and directory listings only. No editorial link from any publication or blog.
- RoundupsHP 02
0 of the top 40 roundups
Every 'best note-taking app' list ranking on page one recommended the same three apps; 34 of them are refreshed at least yearly.
- ContentHP 03
No 'alternative' landing pages
Searches like 'obsidian alternative' had nothing to land on; the closest page was a 180-word features list.
- PressHP 04
No press kit
No screenshots, fact sheet or founder bio, so an editor could not include the app without emailing first.
- TechnicalHP 05
Changelog rendered client-side
Release notes loaded by JavaScript after page load; the most linkable proof of momentum was barely indexed.
- EntityHP 06
Name mismatch
App stores said 'Pebblecourt Notes', the site said 'Pebblecourt'; roundups and AI answers split the two.
SELWorld select · the strategy
Four worlds, four tactics, one run to the castle.
Built on our Authority plan. Each world unlocks the next: comparison pages give coverage somewhere to point, the launch gives editors a reason to look, podcasts give them a story, and digital PR gets the app into the lists themselves.
- 1-1Month 1–2
Alternatives Plains · Alternatives pages
Build the landing pads every 'X alternative' search and roundup writer would need.
- Six honest comparison pages: Pebblecourt vs each of the big three, plus 'for writers', 'offline-first' and 'Markdown' angles.
- Feature tables kept factual and dated, with a 'when the other app is the better choice' section to earn trust.
- SoftwareApplication schema, pricing and platform data marked up so roundups and AI answers can quote them correctly.
BOSS: No page ranked for any 'alternative' query; the best position was 64.
- 1-2Month 3
Launch Pad · Product Hunt launch
Turn a quiet v3 release into one loud, linkable day.
- Launch timed with the v3 offline sync release; 400 existing users invited three weeks ahead to try the beta, not to upvote.
- A press kit page went live the same morning: screenshots, founder bio, pricing, fact sheet and an embargo-free changelog.
- Launch-day follow-ups to 60 newsletter curators who cover new tools, each with a one-paragraph angle.
BOSS: Zero press kit and no screenshots journalists could reuse.
- 1-3Month 4–6
Podcast Caverns · Podcast outreach
Put the founder's story in the ears of the people who write the roundups.
- A shortlist of 48 productivity, indie-hacker and writing podcasts; 14 bookings from three founder-story angles.
- Every episode got a show-notes link to a guest resource page, not the homepage, so links stayed relevant.
- Clips turned into short posts that roundup editors were then pitched alongside.
BOSS: The founder had never been interviewed; no story existed online.
- 1-4Month 7–10
Roundup Castle · Digital PR
Earn a place in the 'best note-taking app' lists that already rank.
- Mapped 112 roundups ranking for 40 target queries and sorted them by how often they are refreshed.
- Pitched each editor before their refresh date with a tailored 30-second summary and a test account.
- A data story — 'How 2,000 writers take notes' from an opt-in user survey — earned coverage beyond the app press.
BOSS: Of the top 40 roundups, none mentioned Pebblecourt.
Tactics in play: Digital PR · Product Hunt launch · Podcast outreach · Alternatives pages.
1-1The run · month by month
10 months, played as one level. Column height is referring domains; coins are roundup inclusions.
Press start
Before the run
22 referring domains, no roundup inclusions, and three bigger apps owning every list.
Downloads index 100 · Paid conversions index 100 (baseline 100)
M01 · +0 coins
Map the level
Link, SERP and roundup audit; 112 target lists catalogued by refresh cadence.
M02 · +1 coins
Alternatives pages ship
Six comparison pages, schema and a rebuilt features page go live.
M03 · +2 coins
Product Hunt day
v3 launch with press kit; first roundup inclusion and 13 new domains.
M04 · +3 coins
First podcast airs
Founder-story episodes start; guest resource page collects links.
M05 · +4 coins
Newsletter wave
Curator follow-ups land; 'alternative' pages break into the top 10.
M06 · +5 coins
Survey fielded
Opt-in writer survey closes with 2,000 responses for the data story.
M07 · +4 coins
Data story launches
'How writers take notes' pitched to tech and productivity desks.
M08 · +5 coins
Refresh-date pitching
Editors pitched ahead of their scheduled list updates.
M09 · +4 coins
Castle gates
Two of the top five 'best note app' roundups add Pebblecourt.
M10 · +3 coins
Level complete
31 roundup inclusions and 187 referring domains.
★Results
Level complete
Listed in 31 'best app' roundups, after 10 months.
Roundup inclusions
Referring domains
Organic downloads
Paid conversions
Modelled scenario for a fictional business — not a client result. Rankings and traffic are never guaranteed; see our Terms.
Referring domains · the staircase
Power-ups · index, baseline 100
Organic downloads 252Paid conversions 148
Coin purse · where the 31 lists sit
Productivity blogs×12
Tech publications×7
Writer & student guides×5
App review sites×4
Developer newsletters×3
High-score table · Google rankings
| Query | Vol/mo | Before | After |
|---|---|---|---|
| obsidian alternative | 6.6k | 64 | 6 |
| minimal note taking app | 2.9k | 71 | 4 |
| notion alternative for writers | 880 | n/r | 3 |
| offline notes app mac | 1.3k | 38 | 2 |
| markdown notes app | 2.4k | 64 | 7 |
| bear app alternative | 1.0k | n/r | 5 |
| best note taking app 2026 | 9.9k | n/r | 11 |
n/r = not ranking in the top 100.
Continue?
Get a plan like this
Our Authority plan builds the coverage and links that get a smaller product onto the lists that matter.