This is IMHO a false dichotomy, there are lots and lots of opportunities between these extremes. I'm currently in a project at the intersection of software and shipping, it sells like hotcakes, we currently have a conversion rate (inbound prospects to signed clients) of more than 75%.
This is far from easy to pull off, and there are a few points I'd like to make based on my current situation (we're pulling a gross margin of $500 to $5000 by client):
* Selling pure software is hard. At the most basic level, we sell shipping rates and the accompanying software is the cherry on top (I'm saying this even tough I run the technical side of things). We're doing well because our target market understands the value proposition even better than we do, we manage to offer a free product and make money on it.
* Co-founders matter. I couldn't even have had the idea on my own, much less the resources (contacts, skills, ...) to launch the business. I'm very fortunate to have met co-founders that are beasts on the business and shipping & logistics sides of things, we form an awesome triptych, which is a very delicate balance to have.
* Everything takes much more time than you expect. You're at ease in the technical domain, this won't be much of a problem while developing your core product. But selling will take much of your time, it's is a time-consuming activity and you don't know anything about it. Plugging your product in your client's systems will take time, either because your client hasn't any in-house developer or they're less than half as skilled as you are.
If you're a solo hacker selling pure software in the B2B space, you are, I believe, in for a rough, rough ride.