[ZephyrBlu]

I think one of the important lessons that the author is yet to learn is that people don't give a shit about your product.

You have to realize that even if someone gives you a 1 star review saying "product does not work", they still probably don't give a shit. Even people who use your product more than likely aren't going to give you any feedback.

The fact the author is focused on things like SEO and is overly emotional about people's reactions to their product shows they don't understand this.

Who cares about SEO if your content doesn't make people give a shit, and having people take time out of their day to tell you how shit your product is isn't the worst outcome. I would rather people tear me and my shit apart than them not react at all.

The fact someone organically posted about your product and it got engagement is actually interesting. Maybe none of their feedback is actionable, but I would still count that as a win.

It also sounds like they're trying to build generic B2C products, which I think is the complete opposite of what you should be building as a solo bootstrapper.

[ackbar03]

>It also sounds like they're trying to build generic B2C products, which I think is the complete opposite of what you should be building as a solo bootstrapper

What would be your recommendation then regarding this point? Niche b2b?

[yoshyosh]

This talk is the holy grail on this topic https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otbnC2zE2rw niche b2b, w/ natural recurring cycles, $99 price point at a minimum, and not needing to be on call is most ideal

[ThePhysicist]

I would avoid going into areas with lots of existing hype (e.g. privacy-friendly website analytics) where you'll compete with literally thousands of companies from all over the world and where you'll have very few ways to truly stand out.

Business models that are more defensible are those that require bigger investments and deeper expertise to build, as that will make it more difficult to copy for incumbents.

[ZephyrBlu]

Yes, niche B2B seems to be the winning play from what I have seen and heard from successful indie hackers.

[jbman223]

I’ve had great success building B2C apps as side projects. It’s more about matching your passions to solving issues. Otherwise you’ll burn out and produce crap before you ever make anything people use.

[yuvalr1]

Can you recommend resources to help you succeed in building B2C products as a solo entrepreneur? Alternatively, can you elaborate on your take?

I'm interested in building B2C products, and I find that IH is mostly concentrated around B2B (which is logical, because B2C entrepreneurs don't have incentives to post their story there).

[jbman223]

Check my other reply to the sibling of my original post for a little more detailed story. I need to check out IndyHacker. B2C products have a longer growth cycle if you’re not full time, as prices are lower but the markets are bigger. My main recommendation is to follow a lot of the advice given for B2B - just involve users in more of the process. I think B2C is traditionally harder for devs because it’s a lot more personal and human than B2C, and requires usually a lot more of the BS work that others have diminished in the comments here: finding and becoming active in relevant communities to your product, creating content and perfecting SEO to use Google to drive natural growth, etc.

[adav]

Success by which measure? I fear that a solo entrepreneur making a B2C product that also alights with their passion is firmly in the danger zone - you’ll want to keep making crap that’s no one will use while your passion clouds/hides any signs to stop.

Would love to hear ideas for dealing with overcoming this potential major issue. Perhaps if it’s only a side project that’s safer?

[jbman223]

My most successful side project - by traffic volume and by usage - is a viral site idea which consistently generates over 1 million users in July of every year, those users generate about 20k in revenue yearly. It solves a problem I had in high school, and lots of other students have too. The project revolves around seeing location locked test scores up to 2 days early.

I think the important aspect that keeps the project useful is by using the same metrics that you would use to evaluate any business. I’m able to run this company completely in my spare time, and it’s reached a point where only a week of work is needed per year to keep it stable. Traditional metrics, front end analytics and some anonymized data collection, as well as social media sentiment review show extremely positive user feedback. As well as continued growth every year.

It’s important to remember that it’s your baby and your idea still has to follow traditional success metrics. And also, for a side project, success metrics don’t have to exclusively be “billion dollar company with VC funding in 3 months that is my full time job that I’ve invested my whole life into.”

[yuvalr1]

> It also sounds like they're trying to build generic B2C products, which I think is the complete opposite of what you should be building as a solo bootstrapper

Why do you think solo bootstrappers shouldn't build B2C products?

[ZephyrBlu]

Because B2B just makes more sense for small scale businesses. And I say this as someone who is building a B2C SaaS product.

Here are a few reasons off the top of my head:

1) B2B can charge higher prices (Charge More (TM)), which means you can afford higher CAC and require less customers to reach profitability

2) Businesses tend to be more sticky than consumers

3) You can segment the market more effectively with pricing

4) Customers are more likely to be grateful/appreciative because your product directly impacts their business

5) Support is less likely to be a headache due to a smaller number of customers and 4)