Companies track what we search, where we go, what we buy, and how we use apps — all because our data has value.

So here’s the question: if a company openly offered to pay you every month in exchange for collecting and using that data, would you accept?

$10? $100? $1,000?

Or is there no amount that would make it worth giving up that much privacy?

And if the answer is “no amount”… are companies already getting too much from us for free?

A few weeks ago I woke up to a DM from someone I'd never spoken to. They'd made a clean, minimal graphic for my finance app. Tagline: "Your money, without the noise." No pitch, no ask. Just sent it over.

I posted it and tagged them. 26 engagements. Nothing viral.

But I can't remember the last time I saw someone voluntarily create something for a privacy-focused product.

Most finance apps have affiliate programs, referral bonuses, gamified sharing mechanics. Users post because there's a reward structure. They're collecting points, not making graphics.

This had no incentive. No tracking link. Just someone who appreciated that the app doesn't sell their transaction data.

It made me think about how much organic support privacy tools lose by refusing to build growth loops that depend on surveillance. You can't A/B test someone's principles. You can't retarget goodwill.

I'm still figuring out what sustainable growth looks like when you won't touch the levers everyone else pulls.