HN Explorer

Ask HN: How do you get your first customers?

6 points by conqrr ↗ HN
Is there a service or someone I can hire who can give me quality leads to pitch my small SaaS product to? For Saas that's easily demoable/usable and flashy, just publicly posting can go viral, but not for the boring but useful category. I've tried the friends and family approach and friends usually don't really need the product. I've tried going local and approaching physically but its too time consuming.

8 comments

[ 5.7 ms ] story [ 43.7 ms ] thread
throwawaysalome
Find a stepped over middle manager of a Fortune 500 company and tie his fortunes to your own.
conqrr
I like this, would any Sales manager work? Although can't be Fortune 500 as my target audience is probably way lower like small business
throwawaysalome
We in the software sales biz call them "champions." Ultimately everyone just wants to go home at 5, and a new system jeopardizes that. So the only way to make headway is to get a disgruntled insider to move the chains.
eranation
1. Show HN

2. https://g2.com

3. https://www.producthunt.com

4. find bloggers who write about your topic and suggest a guest post

5. find a PR firm and go on podcasts / webinars

6. if you have a VC - they can make some introductions

7. post on linkedin

8. create high quality blogs (make sure they are indexable)

9. reddit (if you have a community)

10. meetups

11. if you have funding - going to events

tip - it takes a lot of time and effort, even if your product is superb, to get initial traction.

What is your SaaS / what industry?

carlosjobim
Selling to small businesses is a nightmare (I saw your comment below). There is a reason they are small, and that is usually because the owners don't think with a business mindset. Those people won't be interested in any SaaS to change the way they operate. So your targets are the few up and starting small businesses, while you should put a lot of effort in making a product that is attractive to medium-large businesses.

For marketing, your #1 focus should be a great web site. Forget social media completely. When somebody has a problem to solve they will use Google. If your website ranks well for their specific problem, then you will make the sale unless you do something stupid and sabotage yourself.

That's about all advice you can get without telling more about your product.

helph67
"A gimmick is a novel device or idea designed primarily to attract attention or increase appeal, often with little intrinsic value.[1][2] When applied to retail marketing, it is a unique or quirky feature designed to make a product or service "stand out" from its competitors." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gimmick
dyeje
You can’t outsource talking to customers, understanding their world, and ultimately selling them on your solution. That is a founder’s job until you’ve closed enough of them to make a playbook for a salesperson. Not to mention it’s probably your #1 feedback loop for improving the product.