Alpha Bro Apps

Many people still believe self-discipline apps only take off when there’s a coach, influencer, or well-known face behind them.

But now, some of the fastest-growing apps are suggesting the opposite.

Streaks, challenges, dashboards, and gamified progress are going viral on TikTok and Instagram, generating millions of views without relying on anyone’s face or name.

For these apps, the story is the user’s journey.

Two of these apps are standing out in the alpha-male-self-improvement niche.

Both apps were launched this year.

DAWG was released six months ago and captured 84.7 million views, with a strategy heavily focused on Instagram Reels.

Access all data here: https://app.shortimize.com/c/2b100NYjYNTE08

Endeavorise was released around the same time, back in May.

They’ve racked up 18.5 million views so far, mostly from TikTok.

Access all videos here: https://app.shortimize.com/c/2b10bZe5rTJeIZ

Last month, we published an article about the format that Endeavorise used to generate over 10,000 downloads.

It was always the same, repeated every single day — a faceless 20-second clip fading in to highlight an app feature (usually a colorful chart), paired with a relatable hook about self-improvement, breakups, or motivation.

Every video shows the Wojak meme guy, and since he’s part of a real app screenshot, it gets way more conversions than a regular funny meme post. Or at least, it should…

The top-performing video has hit 3.1 million views and 1,361 comments, mostly from male users showing their progress in the app or talking about what keeps them motivated.

The app mainly targets groups of friends and people into self-improvement, but its focus is clearly on men, especially those in “Bro culture” and aspiring entrepreneurs.

DAWG is following a similar path. The team is sticking to one format on both platforms, and it’s gotten quite some traction already, especially on Instagram.

Each video is about 8 seconds long and uses a hook similar to their competitor:

• “bro 2 months ago vs bro now 💀💀 💀” → 6.2M views
• “every MALE group has that one guy…🥶🤕 💀☠️ “ → 10M views
• “tag bro w this build 💀🥀” → 1.1M views

Their most popular video has 13.9 million views and 1200 comments. It doesn’t use the Wojak character, but the hook is a meme in itself, playing with the idea that men do change when their girlfriends make them.

Again, most of the comments are from guys sharing how their relationships have messed with their performance.

It’s pretty clear they’re both going after a mostly male audience using love and relationship content. Turns out, talking about relationships works, regardless of you’re pushing a long-distance love app, a cheater detector, or some alpha-bro tool.

DAWG’s interface looks a bit different from Endeavorise’s, but it works the same way. The hexagon chart tracks how the user’s lifestyle scores change over six areas:

• Physical
• Ambition
• Relationship
• Discipline
• Mental
• Intelect

Same audience, same targeting, similar format.

In both cases, even though the apps got a bunch of comments, monthly downloads are still low.

Can this kind of faceless, meme-heavy format really hold up as a long-term marketing plan?

We’ll find out in a few months.