Am i doing this wrong? Your views on pre-launch m.v.p..

[sen_]

Prevailing wisdom says build a landing page and do pre-sales before writing a single line of code.

But is this always the right advice?

What happens if your SaaS has a simple value proposition but a deep technical moat behind-the-scenes to deliver it reliably, robustly and simply? To get something in the hands of users that actually delivers, is it ever OK to build out an initial prototype and then market? Especially if the core idea is coming from a deep place of need/gap.

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i'm asking for myself! I'm building Tract Stack: no-code analytics + website builder to grow your business, https:/tractstack.com

* It's not just another website builder with analytics included! People need effective ways to woo their audiences and make a significant impression on each prospective buyer while they are yet in the funnel (before they leave the web page). The core mechanics of Tract Stack are basically a more atomic reconstruction of a 'website'. It breaks out of traditional web 2.0 and opens a quantum of surface-level effects. Under the hood a knowledge graph is being generated based on user interactions. This is fed back in real-time **while the users are yet on-page and in the funnel** allowing for a personalized experience

A live prototype is up and running. I've got another month of work to finish the 'visual editor / wrapper' around this tech so anyone can build their own dynamic websites. Thus far my focus has been on product development and not doing validation or building a waitlist.

Any advice for making this transition to user conversations and product validation?

 

[theodoric]

@sen_ Ok, I am building NoCode Builder for Google Sheets and now at $300 MRR.

Here is my take.

• You are making it complex by adding analytics and website building into one product.
• Cut down the scope and may be make it a Website builder for XYZ audience. There were stories on how founders built website builders for specific customer segments like Real estate, Churches etc. You can always add the analytics/funneling/tracking in the next releases.
• The website building products take time - both for development and getting that traction.

 

[sen_]

@theodoric Thanks for this insight. I like your landing page (and colour scheme!)

Great result on the $300MRR. That's an impressive achievement for sure.

 

[theodoric]

@sen_ Thankyou. The plan is to hit $1K MRR by end of this year.

 

[john20050]

@sen_ How do you know you can sell it?

The biggest reason I tell everyone to sell before you build is because many fall into the trap of building a solution to a problem that doesn’t exist.

 

[sen_]

@john20050 It's a fair question.

For me it's a two-part answer.

Short answer is I don't. All prevailing wisdom puts smart money on those who sell then build.

My nuanced answer is you're right and this is what I plan to do now. I see everything I've built thus far as just the untested building blocks which I can now re-assemble and see what sticks. Equipped with these building blocks, my gamble is I can still do the "sell before build" but with more of a show not tell with a greater promise that will have real legs. that and I'll have inner assurance I can pivot and deliver / grow in search of better product-market-fit.

 

[john20050]

@sen_ I hear you, but if you can’t sell it then what are you going to do with what you’ve built?

I think your steps are out of order.

Full disclosure I’ve made this mistake myself (never again) and now I help others avoid it.

 

[sen_]

@john20050 I don't disagree. (And appreciate your heart in helping!) I won't go into the long explanation of why i the took the steps in order as I did [combination of a variety of life & professional factors]

 

[john20050]

@sen_ All good. I’m just trying to figure out how to best help you.

Please let me know if there’s anything else I can do to help.

Good luck!

 

[dyke101]

@sen_

Prevailing wisdom says build a landing page and do pre-sales before writing a single line of code. But is this always the right advice?

Only if you want to easily avoid wasting months of time by building something that nobody wants to use.

The pre-sales aren't a necessary part of it. You can just test the idea's validity by making a phony landing page and estimating what the market demand / conversion rates would be like.

Alternatively you could just, get in touch with people in your ideal target market, explain exactly what your product offering is and what the benefits are -- and ask if any of them would be interested in becoming an early user of the software. If it's just, crickets, and everyone in your target market is not interested? Or they actively tell you your idea is shit? That's not a good sign. If they're trying to grab you through the computer screen and beg you to use it? That is a good sign.

Even still, what people will claim they'd pay for and use, is different from what they actually WILL pay for and use. So the ultimate and final test is always -- do they actually take their wallet out to pay for it?

With that said I don't exactly practice what I preach on this. I usually get an idea and just start fucking building, lol. For me it kinda comes down to the complexity of the software though -- if it's a simple idea that I can build a v1 version of in a few weeks, I might find myself just saying like: "You know what? In the time it would take me to build a banger landing page, I could just.... create the actual software tool and do a REAL test."

 

[przemek]

@sen_ If people get no idea from the landing page what the product is about because it's a completely new concept, you may want to build an MVP and offer demo.

There's nothing wrong with that.

But, even if you want to go that route, are you sure people are not happy with existing page builders and analytics tools?

 

[dyke101]

@sen_

The core mechanics of Tract Stack are basically a more atomic reconstruction of a 'website'. It breaks out of traditional web 2.0 and opens a quantum of surface-level effects. Under the hood a knowledge graph is being generated based on user interactions. This is fed back in real-time **while the users are yet on-page and in the funnel** allowing for a personalized experience

...I'd work on your elevator pitch. I honestly have no fucking clue from this description what your product does, or is meant to do, or who the target audience is, or what the benefits are of using this software. You need to be able to distill this down, in much simpler language, to have a very punchy and concise value proposition. Maybe your target market would understand this, but to me, this sounds like Deepak Chopra word-salad spiritualism mixed with software development + online marketing.

"Groceries delivered to your doorstep." That's a value proposition anybody can understand.

"a more atomic reconstruction of a website that breaks out of traditional web 2.0 and opens a quantum of surface-level effects, generating a knowledge graph based on user interactions" is a value proposition that requires 3 PhDs to understand. Even if your audience IS super technical, still, there's GOTTA be a way to package the core benefits way more concisely: "Improved on-page user tracking in real time" or something.

 

[sen_]

@dyke101 Great feedback!! Thank you

Over the past month I've been having loads of conversations and pitching in different ways trying to see what sticks. It's been an evolution, but clearly i let the technical slip back in. Super helpful reminder not to! =D