Developer built a SaaS but has no idea how to find users
A developer finished building their first SaaS product but hit a wall when it came to getting actual users. They point out that while coding skills are easy to learn online, nobody teaches the marketing and customer-acquisition side of running a software business.
Completing a product is only half the job — the harder part for most solo developers is getting people to actually use it. There is no shortage of tutorials for writing code, but finding your first paying customers is largely self-taught and trial-and-error. This post struck a nerve because it honestly names a gap that many solo founders face: the transition from builder to marketer. Community responses typically surface practical first steps like engaging directly in niche forums, doing content marketing, or talking to potential users before building to validate demand. For anyone running or starting a one-person internet business, this thread is a reminder that distribution (how you reach users) matters as much as the product itself.
Key points
- Getting users is often harder than building the product for solo developer-founders
- Coding education is abundant, but marketing and customer acquisition are rarely taught
- Direct community participation (Reddit, forums, niche groups) is a common way to land first users
- Talking to potential customers before or during building helps validate whether anyone needs the product
- Solo founders need to treat marketing as a regular habit, not a one-time launch task
Quick term guide
- software
- Programs or apps that run on a computer or smartphone.
- business
- An activity where you provide value to others in exchange for money.
- Solo developer
- An individual who handles all parts of creating a project or product alone.
- developers
- Developers are people who build software, apps, or websites.
- solo founder
- A single person who builds and runs a product or business without co-founders
- responses
- An OpenAI API feature for creating and handling model answers.
- content marketing
- A strategy where you regularly publish useful articles, posts, or videos to attract potential customers over time.
- distribution
- All the work involved in getting your product or content in front of people — posting on social media, sending emails, sharing in communities, etc.