The hardest stage.
WHY IT IS HARD
You have no reputation, no proof and no audience.
WHAT DOES NOT WORK
Advertising Broad announcements Waiting to be discovered
WHAT DOES WORK
Approaching people individually Places where your audience already gathers Personal networks Being useful publicly before selling
WHAT TO DO FIRST
Make a list of specific people who have the problem.
WHY SPECIFIC PEOPLE
Addressing a market is impossible; addressing a person is not.
WHAT TO SAY
That you built something for a problem you understand, and would like their opinion.
WHY THAT FRAMING
It is honest, and it opens a conversation rather than a pitch.
WHAT TO OFFER EARLY CUSTOMERS
Attention Direct access to you Influence over the product
WHAT NOT TO OFFER
Permanent free use Custom development Prices you cannot sustain
WHY
They become precedents that are painful to unwind.
WHAT TO ACCEPT ABOUT EARLY CUSTOMERS
They will need disproportionate support, and that support is how you learn.
HOW MANY YOU NEED
Few. Ten paying customers teaches more than a thousand signups.
WHAT TO DO WITH EVERY CONVERSATION
Record what was said, including from those who declined.
