Only fools and geniuses build new ideas
It’s natural to think that your idea will be the next big thing. However, most businesses die because they are solving a problem no one has.
I spent a lot of time building a marketplace for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu drop-in classes, believing that because this app didn’t already exist, its success would be guaranteed.
There was a reason it didn’t exist. No one was asking for it.
I posted the app in a subreddit and offered a solution to the problem of dropping into gyms while travelling. In Reddit fashion, the response was blunt. People were apparently not having that problem. A typical response was: “Gym owners are good at responding to DMs.”
Many business owners are stuck in this loop. They build an Airbnb for X that no one was asking for. As such, they have no customers or revenue. Time wasted.
Build Something That Already Exists
Save time and money by avoiding trying to validate an untested idea with a slim chance of success.
The best businesses already exist. Find a business that already has paying customers and build a competitor.
Once you have found a model, search Reddit and X for complaints about that business and work out how you can differentiate your product to solve their specific issue.
It’s far easier to market your SaaS when you understand the pain points you are solving.
Then, you can reply to threads discussing your app and how it solves those problems.
That is how you get customers early.
That is how you do not waste your time and effort.
YourTimer.io
For my latest venture, I decided to build something that already exists and generates revenue.
YourTimer.io is a B2B SaaS where companies create countdown timers for launches, events, and sales. They can then embed the countdown timer on their site.
Additionally, they can get a branded link to distribute publicly (test-company.yourtimer.io).
New-Age Marketing
Traditional marketing has been one-way, such as Meta, Google Ads, TV ads, etc. This all costs money. A lot of money. Business owners who are bootstrapping their products don’t have that kind of budget.
Founders are now turning to two-way channels: forums such as Reddit and X.
Subreddits such as r/Entrepreneur, r/SaaS, r/Solopreneur, etc., are popular channels for advertising SaaS products.
Self-promotion posts are discouraged and usually removed, so it is important to make your posts value-driven. This doesn’t mean telling everyone how great your app is. Rather, discuss what you’ve learned along the way and how this can help other founders in the community.
Additionally, find threads where people are discussing a problem that your app solves. There, you can gently introduce your SaaS.
Founders have moved away from traditional, blind advertising. There is a growing movement towards conversing with customers early on. This gives founders instant feedback on what works, what doesn’t, and what features they should add.
SaaS Saturation
In the vibe-coding era, anyone with an internet connection and Claude credits can build a SaaS company. SaaS is becoming as accessible as drop shipping was in 2019.
Adapting to client needs and being willing to actually speak to them is the differentiator.
AI-generated slop is now easily detectable. Any Reddit posts made with AI are inundated with complaints about how it was obviously AI.
Being a real human, another ape just like your customers, is the best way to create and sell your product.