We started Boringlaunch at the end of November 2023 and have just completed 11 months. We have not made millions, but we have made enough that we can work on this full-time. I thought it would be worth sharing these insights that have helped us along the way.
1. Find your first dollar before finding your moat.
2. Spend 10x the time to validate problems; spend 1x the time to validate the solution.
3. You don’t need more money/expertise/following, you need a good problem to get the first 10 users.
4. If you don’t know where to find the first 10 users, don’t build anything.
5. No one cares how you solve the problem, everyone cares if you can solve the problem.
6. Deliver more than you promise, promise what you can deliver.
7. You don’t need to be an expert, but you should know enough to deliver value.
8. Finding the right type of users is equally important. Paid users are better than free users. Paid users who help you improve your product are priceless.
9. Figure out your primary marketing channel and experiment with as many as you can.
10. Promote where your solution can actually add value.
11. Go deep and then go wide, not the reverse.
12. The idea is important, execution is 10x more important, and the market is 100x more important.
13. Starting something new is exciting, staying excited about what you have started isn’t. Experiment, learn, and iterate to keep that freshness alive.
14. Failure is not the problem; slow failure is.
15. Take action based on what you know, and you will learn more to take more action.
16. When in doubt, experiment.
17. Take a simple idea and take it seriously.
18. Old is new New.
19. Luck plays an important role, believe it or not.
For me and most of you, these are just reminders as most of us already know these :)
"Spend 10x the time to validate problems; spend 1x the time to validate the solution. " - super !
Fascinating! Really helpful advice
Thank you
A refreshing article with practical advice for budding entrepreneurs. What stands out is the need to validate user needs before diving into solution building. These are simple but crucial lessons, especially around persevering through growth phases and not striving for perfection from the start. Inspiring and helpful!
Thank you
all these are great insight, and vote for #6
Can you elaborate how to do #2 in your case? Appreciate
Thanks.
To validate the problem, we looked for signals on social media, talked to potential customers over DM.
We observed that finding platforms and submitting your product would require some effort and time. Even if the platforms are known, each platform had different requirements, such as product details, logo size, pricing details, etc.
Based on the feedback and research we got our first validation that that people were looking to list their products on as many platforms as they can. And this will save at least 20+ hours of searching and submission time. Hence we assumed that people will be happy to pay for the Done For You submission service.
So we created a simple landing page with a no code tool and to validate it quickly, we created early bird offers for the first 10 users.
Then we started engaging with founders on twitter and recommended our solution wherever we felt it can add value.
DMed founders who were already looking for platforms or doing submission on platforms.
And our early slots were sold within a week.
brilliant move! agree with the different platform has it's unique characteristic. we've been contacting some of our target users but have no luck to get response on twitter. do you have any suggestions on how to do it? do you use cold messages? or do you make use of some tools to reach out in scale?
Building Boringlaunch offers valuable insights into creating a successful product launch. From planning and execution to overcoming challenges, the experience highlights the importance of simplicity, consistency, and clear communication. Focused on user needs, Boringlaunch emphasizes iterative improvements, gathering feedback, and staying adaptable in a competitive market. The process also underscores how attention to detail and a collaborative team approach can make even a seemingly “boring” launch impactful and memorable.
which platforms? Can you share 2-3?
You can check a few platforms on our website, but the complete list is accessible to paid users only.
https://www.boringlaunch.com/
No 4 is my favorite "If you don’t know where to find the first 10 users, don’t build anything. "
This was great info, especially #4 - If you don’t know where to find the first 10 users, don’t build anything.