How LingQ Scaled to Millions with Zero Ad Spend

Jan 10, 2026

Mark Kaufmann, Co-founder and CEO of LingQ, shares how his language learning platform grew to millions of users without any ad spend. A former pro hockey player, Mark reveals the power of product-led growth and the significance of community engagement. He discusses the transition from web to mobile, the crucial impact of his father's YouTube channel, and their unique immersion approach. Mark also highlights the future of language learning with AI integration and offers insights on maintaining user retention and scaling organically.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Transcript

Episode notes

ANECDOTE

Origin Story From A Real Encounter

Mark Kaufmann and his father started by helping an immigrant with language struggles, which inspired their product approach.
They turned Steve Kaufmann's personal language methods into a web tool that later became LingQ.

INSIGHT

Long-Term Persistence Scales Growth

Persistence over many years produced slow growth that later accelerated into millions of users.
Continuous improvement and technology shifts (mobile, AI) compounded LingQ's traction.

ADVICE

Use Founder Content To Pre-Qualify Users

Use founder-led content to pre-prime users about your methodology and raise conversion quality.
Leverage trusted creators to attract highly qualified, higher-converting users.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

In this episode, discover the app marketing strategies that helped LingQ scale to millions of users with zero ad spend. We are joined by Mark Kaufmann, Co-Founder and CEO of LingQ, to reveal exactly how they built a product people love.

A former pro hockey player turned tech founder, Mark brings a unique perspective on performance, resilience, and building products that scale. Together with his father, polyglot and YouTuber Steve Kaufmann, he built LingQ, a product-led app that teaches languages through real-world immersion.

Mark will share how a small, mission-driven team grew LingQ into one of the most recognized language apps without relying on massive ad budgets, just product innovation, community, and data-driven growth.

You will discover:

✅ The product-led growth strategy behind LingQ’s global success

✅ How to scale organically by focusing on community and retention

✅ Building for long-term engagement: what keeps users coming back daily

✅ Why founder-led storytelling still matters in 2026’s crowded app market

Learn More:

🌐 Explore LingQ: https://www.lingq.com

You can also watch this video here: ⁠https://youtube.com/live/NSyW0hxytrU

👥 Want to Join the App Founders Community?

Get mentorship, accountability, and insider growth tactics from real app founders →

👉 https://appfounders.co

Want expert guidance to grow your app?

Book a quick call with App Masters:

https://appmasters.com/contact-us/

Get training, coaching, and community: https://appmasters.com/academy/

*********************************************