Problem
After apify create succeeds today, the terminal shows:
```
✅ Actor 'my-actor' created successfully!
Next steps:
cd "my-actor"
apify run
```
The journey stops there. The developer has no idea that:
apify run is only local testing — the Actor is not on the platform yet
apify push deploys it to Apify
- Publishing makes it visible in the Apify Store, where it can earn
- They are literally 2–3 commands away from publishing their first Actor
Beginners in particular hit this wall. They run the Actor locally, it works, and they think they are done. The publish step — which is the step that drives revenue for both the developer and Apify — is completely invisible.
What Should Happen
After a successful create, the terminal should show the complete journey with exact commands:
```
✅ Actor 'my-actor' created successfully!
You are 3 steps away from publishing your first Actor:
Step 1 → cd "my-actor" && apify run test it locally
Step 2 → apify push deploy to Apify
Step 3 → apify publish go live in the Store & earn
```
The step count adjusts automatically — if dependencies were not installed, Step 1 includes the install command first, making it 4 steps.
Why This Matters
- Developers who do not see a finish line do not cross it. Making the publish path visible directly increases the number of Actors that get published.
- More published Actors → more content in the Apify Store → more organic discovery → more paying users.
- This is a zero-infrastructure change. It is purely terminal output.
What Can Be Measured
- Activation rate: percentage of
apify create runs that are followed by apify push within 7 days
- Time-to-first-publish: median time from create to first published Actor
Both metrics are already tracked via CLI telemetry — this change gives the team a clear before/after comparison.
Code Location
Both changes live in one file: src/lib/create-utils.ts
buildNextSteps() — add push and publish steps
formatCreateSuccessMessage() — add motivation header and step labels
No new dependencies. No breaking changes. --json output is unaffected.
Problem
After
apify createsucceeds today, the terminal shows:```
✅ Actor 'my-actor' created successfully!
Next steps:
cd "my-actor"
apify run
```
The journey stops there. The developer has no idea that:
apify runis only local testing — the Actor is not on the platform yetapify pushdeploys it to ApifyBeginners in particular hit this wall. They run the Actor locally, it works, and they think they are done. The publish step — which is the step that drives revenue for both the developer and Apify — is completely invisible.
What Should Happen
After a successful create, the terminal should show the complete journey with exact commands:
```
✅ Actor 'my-actor' created successfully!
You are 3 steps away from publishing your first Actor:
Step 1 → cd "my-actor" && apify run test it locally
Step 2 → apify push deploy to Apify
Step 3 → apify publish go live in the Store & earn
```
The step count adjusts automatically — if dependencies were not installed, Step 1 includes the install command first, making it 4 steps.
Why This Matters
What Can Be Measured
apify createruns that are followed byapify pushwithin 7 daysBoth metrics are already tracked via CLI telemetry — this change gives the team a clear before/after comparison.
Code Location
Both changes live in one file:
src/lib/create-utils.tsbuildNextSteps()— add push and publish stepsformatCreateSuccessMessage()— add motivation header and step labelsNo new dependencies. No breaking changes.
--jsonoutput is unaffected.