
Show HN: Astound – a voice coaching app to boost your speaking power - robinyapockets
https://itunes.apple.com/app/astound/id1253443132?mt=8
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robinyapockets
Hi HN, my name is Robin and I teamed up with my girlfriend Leila, who works as
a voice coach and speech therapist, to build an iPhone app called Astound.
It’s like a fitness app for your voice. I started working on Astound because I
had difficulty with my own voice. For my last startup idea, I went door
knocking around Brooklyn, talking to as many artists as I could. However,
being incredibly nervous and exhausted, I picked up poor speaking habits and
put too much pressure on my vocal chords. At the end of most days my voice was
hoarse, and I had the constant feeling that I sounded too timid and
unconvincing. Luckily I was able to turn to Leila for some help, and through
her training I’m now learning how to keep my voice healthy, and turn it into a
more effective communication tool. I always thought that voice coaching is
just for singers and actors. Now I think it’s for everyone, whether you use
your voice to captivate an audience, build trust with a customer, or sell an
idea. Unfortunately this training is not an option for most people. Vocal
health can regress - one in ten Americans actually suffers from some sort for
of voice disorder, which can become troublesome as soon as your job depends on
it. I’m passionate about the topic of voice. So after my last startup failed,
I learned iOS app development (apologies to all non iPhone users) and built
Astound. Astound includes guided breathing, voice, and articulation exercises
packaged in different workout plans. The most recent plan is for dating. Yes,
research actually suggests that the tone of your voice matters quite a bit.
I’m currently working on a plan to help users strengthen their voice for being
on the phone all day. It’s a subscription model, but you’ll receive enough
free content to decide if it’s worth it to continue. Just like with physical
exercise, you will hear an improvement in your voice with practice. So my
current goal is to make it fun and engaging that you’d want to practice
everyday. I’d love to hear your feedback and see how I can get closer to this
goal. I’d also love to hear your stories. Do you have a similar experience
with your voice as I do? I very much look forward to hearing your comments.
Thanks for your time!

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laflame
Looks interesting--I think you're onto something big here. Out of curiosity,
did you write the app in Swift or Objective-C? And how long did the initial
production version take until app store submission?

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robinyapockets
Thanks for the note! I wrote it in Swift, and I'd guess it took about 9 months
from from the moment I thought this could be of value to the first launch.
Hard to say exactly, because of the learning curve.

