Building a SaaS product is one thing, but marketing and growing that product is a different beast.
This should only take about 6 mins to read.
Building a SaaS product is one thing, but marketing and growing that product is a different beast.
Nowadays, you can build an entire SaaS product using no-code tools; in most cases, you can get to market within 30 days or less. You don't need to be a developer; you don't need a degree; you need a laptop and the internet. To say things in the tech world are getting easier is an understatement.
I have some bad news for you...
Unfortunately, there are no fast marketing tools to drive users to your product. The majority of entrepreneurs start with no investors and no big money to get their business off the ground. Instead, you have to find different tactics for growth. You have to get creative.
As a founder, I have become a big believer in the "personal" touch. I love experiencing that personal connection with users.
Here are a few different ways to get your product out there, create a great experience, and put your personal touch.
Don't underestimate the power of content and social media. You can write in your voice, the way you talk. You don't need to get fancy, be clear about your product and what problem it solves. Users care about the outcome.
Yes, there is a lot of noise on social media, and most of it is complete trash. If you believe your product brings value to users, you're in luck: you have an advantage. You have to start talking about it and finding your first few users.
There is always someone out there that's a few steps behind you and can learn from your process.
There is no better marketing than sharing free value. Everyone appreciates that. Those who read about your journey will likely support you and sign up for your product. It's the most valuable way of building trust and bringing real users to your product.
Harsh reminder: There is no overnight success. You have to be consistent and find ways to deliver value every single day.
When you have a quality product, it makes the word-of-mouth marketing channel a lot more effective.
Example:
When I ran my sock subscription company in 2015, we focused on purchasing only the highest quality socks (based on feel and thread count) because we knew that once someone put them on, they would love them.
Inside each box, we would have a handwritten note + a coupon for them to hand to a friend to get their first pair for a significant (30% discount). We ended up growing our subscriber base to over 300 subscribers, 100% organic, and with no paid ads.
Don't forget word of mouth doesn't have to take place in a person-to-person meeting or conversation - there are a lot of word-of-mouth opportunities on social media.
Get a few users on board for free; if they find the product useful, they will post about it. Everyone wants to be a trailblazer and say they were one of the first users, it gives them a bit of clout, and that's ok.
I put this to the test.
I've launched 3 products this past year:
And I did some real-time testing with personalized demos and onboarding for Thymeline and DropVoice.
The results:
90% sign-ups when you get on a video call with someone and guide them through the process. It's clear that personal touch matters.
An added benefit is that you also build a relationship with those users; they can put a name to a face (and personality). This is where you build real trust.
You can only get so much across with text and copywriting; sometimes, a voice and some good laughter do the trick a lot better. Really digging into the user's use case and providing that extra detail they don't have to figure out for themselves.
It's also a good way for someone to give you real-time feedback. If something is not clear or user-friendly, you can make those improvements for the next batch of users and avoid that same conversation.
Next time you launch a product, try reaching out to some of your users and scheduling a demo.
You can find people to do this part for you as you grow. In the beginning, do the things that DON'T scale, like taking every single onboarding/demo call yourself.
For Thymeline we just launched our affiliate marketing channel if you're interested in joining. You can spread the word and earn some $$$.
The podcast is officially heading into SEASON 3. I have some amazing guests lined up and a few episodes already recorded. I am pumped.
Catchup on Season 2 before we release Season 3
That's a wrap for issue #30
Email me at z@zlatkobijelic.com if you are building something. I'd love to know what you're working on and if there is anything I can do to help you.
Random question:
What's your biggest win of 2022?
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