Coca-Cola sounds like cocaine. But look at where they are now.
#18 Once you get one customer, it's done.
Once you get one, you feel you can get 10.
Once you get 10, you feel you can get a 100.
You only need one.
The sooner you understand this?
The sooner you'll win.
#19 Be open to new ideas
Don't be close-minded:
There's always a partnership or something that can happen.
>cold email
>influencers
>complimentary SaaS'es
>distribution channels in other companies
If you think you hit a dead end,
You're not paying attention.
#20 Investigate what buyers look for and optimize the hell out of it.
Churn, growth, recurring revenue...
One day you may want to sell it,
So build right from day one.
#21 You don't need to create the new idea - copy what works and add your little twist to it.
People have already figured out stuff.
People have already been through trials to get where they are.
Learn from that, copy it & iterate later.
Example:
UpLead is ZoomInfo but more affordable and better data.
Signaturely is Docusign but free.
Just do it.
#22 No matter how high your bar is to picking someone to work with, raise it.
The right team can make or break your biz.
Bonus tip:
Hire brilliant people and leave them the fuck alone.
#23 You can start a SaaS for $500.
An API and some code are enough...
A high school kid can do it if he wanted to.
The main problem isn't starting,
The problem is you think starting is harder than it really is.
#24 Fake it till you make it.
When we started Uplead,
I put Google and HubSpot logos on our websites.
Eventually, they ended up becoming our clients.
Also, I created personas on our website that aren't real people. I wanted to make it seem like we had 50 people at the company when it was just me doing everything.
(I didn't want them to think the founder was doing sales, support and everything)
...do this at your own risk.
#25 Everybody's gonna tell you your idea is good. If you really want to see if it's good, ask them for money.
They don't want to lie:
They want you to feel good.
But, you have to draw the line and just ask.
If they buy, you have a client. If they don't you have valuable data
#26 You don't need more than two co-founders.
Start first.
If somebody who aligns with your vision pops up?
Then think about more cofounders...
But you absolutely don't need to be 5 to make it happen.
#27 Nobody's gonna steal your idea.
Don't hide it:
Put it out live.
Fail and iterate in public.
They won't copy you because they're either too swamped or too lazy.
#28 When starting out, just copy the terms and conditions from your competitors.
Once you get big (one or two million in ARR)?
Then hire a great legal team.
#29 Valuations are crazy - you can sell your SaaS for a lot.
Once you start getting up the market, you can sell (easily) for 10x.
If you're doing $5M per year,
You can sell it for $50M.
That's life-changing money.
#30 When starting, worry about handling customers.
The logo, website, legal terms - that can all wait.
Focus on your customers first & the rest will follow.
#31 Paying customer's feedback is worth 10x prospects feedback that aren't paid.
They have skin in the game:
They paid you. They want the product to be better.
The others just want to tell you how to do your job.
#32 Keep a folder with EVERY single testimonial you get.
Then, you can leverage that on the marketing & SEO side and use that as selling points.
Testimonials are everything...
Save them all.
#33 A deal isn't a deal until it's signed on paper.
They can mess you up if you just go via handshakes or emails.
Do it all on paper or digital signatures...
Like Signaturely ;)
#34 SaaS is more about marketing than about coding.
"I can't build a SaaS I'm not a coder"
And?
Coding is part of it but marketing is all of it.
Find someone good and pay them / hire them.
Then get people to pay for it.
#35 Don't do anything unethical.
Bad rep will mess your business up:
Your ethics is all you have in the beginning.
Don't fuck this up.
#36 Raise your fucking prices
Ok this one got a little long - so I'll leave it here.