Comment by dictum | Hacker News Reader

Comment by dictum | Hacker News Reader

Parent Full thread

I'm really interested in starting a SaaS business with 500-1k MRR a year after launch. I'm frugal and the cost of living here is quite small.

I keep hitting a block where I can't find a SaaS idea that could guarantee this revenue that wouldn't require a lot of upfront effort in development. I think I'm better at designing an app and improving its marketing strategy than actually writing the code, but I can't hire a developer.

I read the gospel (ahoyhere's blog, http://unicornfree.com, closer to us mere mortals than 37signals/svn) and understood it as: find a group of people, watch them in their natural habitat, pay attention to the problems they mention having, and if you know a way to solve that problem, turn it into a product.

I still haven't had a solid idea. Every time I identify a group with a problem, the solution is something that would take a lot of upfront work for me on my spare time. I know there's an idea or problem I'm overlooking, but I can't find it.

Well, to be frank, if you want 1,000 MRR, you're going to need to put in the work. You seem averse to the 'upfront work' part of things, but money isn't free. Well, unless you're already rich.

I'm not averse to working hard to make my app reach 1,000 MRR.

There's a big difference between having an MVP done in 3 or 4 months vs. in a year when you're the only person designing, developing, marketing and supporting it. When I take too long to ship something, I get discouraged and bored of the project.

A better way to put it: I'm having trouble thinking of anything I could ship a v1 in 4 months.

Not complaining, just sharing my experience as I think other HNrs may be in a similar situation.

I think you should look for a niche. They are everywhere. Select a professional, then find where their pain comes from, and offer a solution.

Dentists? no shows are a problem for them. Same for hotels. Car repair? is it easy to find one close to you?

Find someone you can have easy access to: you'll have to talk. Talk to your friends. Learn to HEAR when they tell you what's their pain.

Have you done this before?

yes... kind of... I had another job, and used knowledge from that other job. And I still see many needs that are not fulfilled. I'm around 1000€ MRR now... The app was 100% free for one year, and 600 users signed up... 100 of them stayed (10€/m) when it became a paying service. 6 months later, it's not growing anymore :( I need to work more on that project!

Why no do it and just ship whatever you have after 4 months?

"pay attention to the problems they mention having"

Pay attention to the problems they don't mention. You'll learn more from grumbling and swear words than from an interview. So... your test subject is doing something, and apparently not having much fun with it... This also applies to UI design.

There's no such thing as easy money, and I think most people will tell you that going from $0 to $1K MRR (and sustaining it) are a hell of a lot harder than the journey from $1K to $2K.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com