The Almanack of Marc Louvion

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 2,200+

developers.

2. DataFast

Grow your startup with actionable data.

3. IndiePage

Join 3,000+ solopreneurs and showcase your startups.

4. PoopUp

Turn your visitors into customers with wake-up call popups.

5. ZenVoice

https://www.youtube.com/@marc-lou/videos

Stripe invoices, without the fee.

Make catchy screenshots to grow on 𝕏

Visuals get you heaps of attention on 𝕏, if done right.1. Zoom, even too much2. Center the most important information3. Explain when necessary 4. Favor square and portrait format

If done right, visuals get you heaps of attention on 𝕏.

And when you’re building in public, there’s much worth sharing.

Let’s review the best practices for attention-grabbing screenshots with the

Stripe example below.

Estimated reading time: 2 min 47 sec

Let’s turn this raw screenshot into a tweet

BUILD-IN-PUBLIC UPDATE

I just started sharing what I do & learn as a solopreneur on my YouTube channel

One video a week — until I burn out 😄

1. ZOOM, EVEN TOO MUCH

The width of a tweet is smaller than 500 pixels (13.2 centimeters or the length

of a pen).

Compared to your computer screen, the content will be less readable. People

won’t click and zoom.

Ditch everything that’s not crucial. Zoom until you can’t.

Zoom to capture only the interesting part

2. CENTER THE MOST IMPORTANT INFORMATION

The further away from the center, the less people will notice.

Information at the edges of the screenshots is usually ignored.

3. EXPLAIN WHEN NECESSARY

Screenshots that don’t convey any meaning get lost in the void. Use clear and

visual explanations for people to understand your message.

* Use arrows to tell people where to look

* Underline to showcase information

* Write text to explain the meaning

Screenshot tools like CleanShotX or Xnapper have features to help you do this

without design skills.

After getting hooked by a screenshot, people want to learn more

4. FAVOR SQUARE AND PORTRAIT FORMAT

It gets more real estate on the 𝕏 feed.

If you’re working on a laptop, resize your window as a mobile before taking a

screenshot. The format will be more suitable for a tweet.

Now you have my attention, let me read the thread

AVOID BACKGROUNDS

Colorful/gradient backgrounds in screenshots are a bit overrated.

* They distract from the actual content.

* They reduce readability and make the image cramped.

* Fancy backgrounds aren't meaningful for analytics or bill screenshots.

I only add backgrounds to success screenshots with minimal content, like revenue

or followers milestones.

My rule of thumb for anything I create (websites, videos, tweets): Convey

meaning within 2 seconds.

I hope the best practices above will help you get more attention. Tag me when

you tweet, and I’ll check if it can be improved. Have a great weekend!

— Marc

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,500+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Showcase your startups and get more customers. Join 3,000+ solopreneurs!

4. ByeDispute

Don't let a dispute get you banned from Stripe.

5. ZenVoice

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/ditch-your-free-plan.

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7 lessons from building 9 startups in 2023

1. Don't marry your idea 2. Ditch free plans 3. Subscriptions headache is real 4. Swap vitamins for painkillers 5. Emotions sell 6.First impressions matter 7. Food + Sleep + Workout = Psychiatrist1. Don’t marry your idea2. Ditch free plans3. Subscriptions headache is real4. Swap vitamins for painkillers 5. Emotions sell6. First impressions matter7. Food + Sleep + Workout = Psychiatrist

I was lucky in 2023 — my income jumped from $1,500 in January, to $65,000 in

November.

But the real outcome was the knowledge I acquired.

Here are 7 lessons I wish I knew when I started the solopreneur journey.

Estimated reading time: 2 min 36 sec

BUILDING IN PUBLIC UPDATE

My logo maker LogoFast

https://logofa.st/

got the full awards from Product Hunt 🤩

Less time designing, more time shipping!

1. DON’T MARRY YOUR IDEA

Out of the 20+ startups I launched, only 1 made good money and grew.

It’s the same pattern for most solopreneurs who made life-changing money.

When it’s time to focus on your startup, you’ll know.

2. DITCH FREE PLANS

Only 3% of users upgrade to paid plans

You need 10,000 users to make $3,000 ($10/mo subscription). That’s an insane

amount of work for a solopreneur.

“Grow first, monetize later” is for VC-backed startups.

3. SUBSCRIPTIONS HEADACHE IS REAL

I killed a startup by swapping one-time payments for recurring ones.

Monthly passive income is good for business owners only. Users are much more

reluctant to subscriptions.

Start with one-time payments. Add subscriptions if there’s a demand.

4. SWAP VITAMINS FOR PAINKILLERS

100,000 visitors on my nice-to-have product website made $6,000.

100,000 visitors on my must-have product website made $100,000.

Unless you have an audience, avoid note-taking apps or habit trackers. People

buy solutions to painful problems.

5. EMOTIONS SELL

Few care about a NextJS boilerplate. But many care about a shortcut to ship

startups faster and reach financial independence.

Rephrase your copy to trigger an emotional reaction.

6. FIRST IMPRESSIONS MATTER

In our digital world, it’s the headline of your website, the thumbnail of your

YouTube video, or the first sentence of your tweet.

That one sentence has more impact on your conversion rate than anything else.

7. FOOD + SLEEP + WORKOUT = PSYCHIATRIST

As a solopreneur, you’re wearing 10 hats (developer + copywriter + accountant…).

Burnout is around the corner.

* Eat healthy, avoid carbs, quit sugar and alcohol

* Exercise daily, even if it’s an easy 15-minute workout

* Make sleep your #1 priority. Sleep at the same time every day in a dark room

at 18°. Don’t drink coffee 10 hours before bed, don’t drink water 3 hours

before bed, dim lights 1 hour before bed.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,500+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Showcase your startups and get more customers. Join 3,000+ solopreneurs!

4. ByeDispute

Don't let a dispute get you banned from Stripe.

5. ZenVoice

https://x.com/marc_louvion/status/1727669772257841416

Stripe invoices without the fee

Your first 1,000 followers on 𝕏

What I would do if I lose 50,000 followers overnight.1. Create your unique profile2. Engage with creators of your expertise3. Post about your work

In 2022, my tweets would get 1 like (mine) before disappearing into the void.

In 2023, my tweets allow me to speak to 50,000 followers, make a living, and

create relationships.

Here’s what I would do if I had to start again.

Estimated reading time: 3 min 38 sec

A chart showing 𝕏 followerss growth

BUILDING IN PUBLIC UPDATE

I’ve been playing with videos on 𝕏 this year and the results are incredible.

This tweet

generated $11,000 in 36 hours during Black Friday last week.

Videos could be really big on 𝕏 in 2024.

1. CREATE YOUR UNIQUE PROFILE

Your 𝕏 profile is what people see before clicking “Follow”. It should be

crystal clear (or noise-free).

Start by finding your identity. Are you a tech solopreneur? A designer? Then

build your profile around it:

* Your bio: Mention your identity explicitly. If you have a relevant track

record, add it. Otherwise, keep it simple.

* Your name: It should be your name or a nickname. Not your startup or revenue

goal.

* Your profile picture: It should be as close to you as possible (unless you’re

in crypto).

* Your banner picture and pinned tweet: Showcase your identity or promote your

work.

Ditch everything that doesn’t add value to your identity: dad of 3, part-time

student, hobbies… Now, onto the most important part.

2. ENGAGE WITH CREATORS OF YOUR EXPERTISE

Most of your new followers will not come from your tweets, but from your replies

to established creators’ tweets.

First, follow 100 creators with the same identity as yours. 𝕏 is good at

recommending them. Like their tweets so your feed will be filled with their

content.

Then reply to their posts as much as you feel comfortable. Make a witty joke,

root for them, and add value. Don’t promote your work unless it’s super

relevant. Behave like you would in real life to create relationships.

3. POST ABOUT YOUR WORK

You want to tell us a story and build your identity. People will start to see

you as the person working on XYZ and root for you. Here’s what I would post

about:

* 60% of behind-the-scenes: What course are you learning from? What feature are

you adding to the app?

* 30% of learnings: What do you know now, and didn’t a month ago?

* 10% of lifestyle: Sunday plan?

This could be a dedicated issue but here are some tips for crispy tweets:

* Say “I”, not “you”

* Avoid long format

* Don’t use ChatGPT

* Tell a story in each post

* 1 sentence = 1 paragraph

* The first sentence is the most important

* Add visuals to add trust (i.e. traffic analytics, code screenshots)

You don’t need analytics or tools. Engage with people, behave like you would in

the real world, and show up daily. That’s how you build relationships and grow

your 𝕏 following.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,500+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Showcase your startups and get more customers. Join 3,000+ solopreneurs!

4. ByeDispute

Don't let a dispute get you banned from Stripe.

5. ZenVoice

Stripe invoices without the fee

How to grow on 𝕏?

This is what I'd do if I lost 36,000 followers.Why should someone follow you?How to be useful?

Hey, it’s Marc

I started 𝕏 in November 2021 with 0 followers. It took 8 months to get the

first 1,000 followers.

Now, it takes 10 days to get 1,000 followers. The game-changer was knowing what

to write, and what not. Let’s talk about it!

Estimated reading time: 3 minutes 12 seconds

WHY SHOULD SOMEONE FOLLOW YOU?

It comes down to 2 criteria:

1. USEFULNESS

There are only two types of content we consume on 𝕏: educational and

inspirational.

* Educational tweets make us smarter, like how to use GPT-4 to improve SEO.

* Inspirational tweets motivate us to crush our goals, like an MRR growth chart

from a fellow solopreneur.

Usefulness describes the level of education/inspiration of a Tweet.

90% of your content should be useful (it’s OK to post about your cat from time

to time).

2. AUTHORITY

6,000 tweets per second.

We’re all competing to get attention. What’s the easiest way to know if a

creator is worth our time?

Her number of followers. If people trust her, so should I.

But authority is a just byproduct of usefulness. So we start with the latter.

HOW TO BE USEFUL?

1. YOU INSPIRE OTHERS

People should read your tweets and think you’re special, unique, and different.

At first, you’re inspirational with what you do:

* You build startups from a boat

* You learn how to code in 6 weeks

* You ship an app every month while working 9 to 5

Then you keep inspiring with your results:

* You get acquired

* You reach ramen profitability

* You get a DM from someone famous

There’s no way to manufacture inspiration. You have to live a remarkable life,

share it, and be patient.

Avoid the future tense trap: a commitment is far less inspiring than an

achievement.

2. OR YOU EDUCATE THEM

You don’t need to be an expert to teach. You only need to know something people

don’t:

* A MacOS shortcut

* A new subreddit to promote an app

* A writing formula to get upvotes on Hacker News

For instance, I follow @wono_strategy because he writes about growing an

audience in a genuine way. I binge, like, and retweet everything he says because

it resonates with me and I haven’t heard this before.

There are two traps to avoid:

1. Everything Education: If you write about habits, audience building, and

finance, your readers will be lost. Focus on your field of expertise.

2. Abstract Education: Topics like motivation, focus, or productivity are too

abstract to be taught on 𝕏. Avoid them, or niche down like @heyeaslo

(productivity + Notion)

My 𝕏 account started to grow once I realized which category I fell into. People

were inspired by the velocity at which I built apps. So I redesigned my profile

and focused on shipping more.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,500+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Showcase your startups and get more customers. Join 3,000+ solopreneurs!

4. ByeDispute

Don't let a dispute get you banned from Stripe.

5. ZenVoice

Stripe invoices without the fee

Part 2 Marketing

Ditch your subscription

I killed 3 startups because of recurring paymentsThe Subscription Fatigue Era$10/month VS. $100One-time payments alternativeWhen subscriptions make sense

The most popular advice for entrepreneurs is to charge subscriptions. Passive

income and predictable revenue, yes sir!

This is terrible advice.

Here’s why recurring payments are killing your business.

SOLOPRENEUR UPDATE

I spent the last 3 months building a new SaaS… 🥁

Introducing DataFast

— the actionable analytics tool for founders who want to grow their startups

with data.

If you try it, I’d love your feedback!

THE SUBSCRIPTION FATIGUE ERA

I killed 3 startups because of recurring payments:

1. IndiePage

https://habitsgarden.com/

* ✅ It makes $4,000/month on autopilot ($45 for lifetime access).

* ❌ It made $0/month when I priced it at $15/year.

2. MakeLanding

https://makelanding.ai/

* ✅ It made $100/day when I launched ($19 per landing page generated).

* ❌ It made $0 with a $5/month subscription.

3. HabitsGarden

* ✅ 100% of users chose the $47 lifetime deal.

* ❌ Nobody buys the $5/month plan.

10x the monthly price, but 100% of the sales

Netflix, Spotify, wifi... I spend a few thousand dollars a year on these

services. When I see $19/month, it’s not just $19. It’s $228 a year, on top of

everything else.

Business owners love subscriptions. Customers hate them.

Here’s the invisible cost of charging recurring payments:

* Conversion rate drop: People are reluctant to commit to another subscription,

which triggers objections and hesitation.

* Fighting churn: People lose interest soon after signing up. Instead of a

steady income, you’re constantly replacing customers who cancel.

$10/MONTH VS. $100

Selling a $10/month monthly subscription is as hard as selling a $100 one-time

payment.

Let’s assume you built an excellent SaaS (10% churn = 10% of your customers

cancel at the end of the month).

Imagine you get 100 customers today:

* You’ll earn $7,176 with subscriptions, after 365 days.

* You earn $10,000 with one-time payments, right now.

Subscription doesn’t mean recurring revenue. If you’re working solo, in 99% of

cases you’re better off financially with one-time payments.

ONE-TIME PAYMENTS ALTERNATIVE

Sometimes, your business has recurring costs, and you can’t afford one-time

payments. I’m not talking about bandwidth (that’s negligible) but things like AI

credits or database costs.

Then try credits-based pricing:

* Let your customers pay upfront for what they’ll use. Generate 10 AI photos

for $5.

* Then, add a Good-Better-Best

https://hbr.org/2018/09/the-good-better-best-approach-to-pricing

package. 100 AI photos for $20 ($.2/photo looks cheap now)

This removes the subscription friction (which boosts your conversion rate) and

helps you avoid constantly fighting churn.

WHEN SUBSCRIPTIONS MAKE SENSE

* B2B: If you’re selling to businesses, subscriptions make sense because the

end goal of any business is to make money.

* Complex credits: When tracking credits is too complex or it’s hard to

quantify what your customers use.

Subscriptions serve a specific purpose. Recurring payment = Recurring value

according to my friend Dan

Just because competitors charge recurring payments doesn’t mean you should.

Remember, people are tired of subscriptions, and purchase behavior is changing.

Not charging a subscription can be a competitive edge.

Oh, and entrepreneurs flex on each other with MRR charts. It’s a status game,

don’t fall for it. In the end, the customer is king.

5 startups I built to help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 4,200+

developers.

2. DataFast

Grow your startup with actionable data.

3. IndiePage

Join 7,000+ solopreneurs and showcase your startups.

4. ByeDispute

Don’t get banned from Stripe for 1 chargeback.

5. ZenVoice

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-reddit

Stripe invoices, without the 0.4% fee.

How to get your 1st customer

If you have 0 audience and $0 for marketing, here are 4 marketing strategies I used to get customers for all my startups.1/ Launch 2/ Cold outreach 3/ Build an audience 4/ Code, code, code

I assume you have a product but 0 audience and $0 for marketing.

Here are 4 marketing strategies I use as solopreneur to get customers for all my

startups.

1/ LAUNCH

List your product on popular launch platforms like Product Hunt.

It’s the fastest way to get results. And it’s free.

* How to launch a startup on Reddit

* How to launch a startup on Product Hunt

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-product-hunt

* How to launch a startup on Hacker News

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-hacker-news

Spend at least 1 hour crafting your headline. It’s 80% of a successful launch.

If you’re building an AI tool and have a few bucks to spare, list on AI

directories like TIAAIFT & Futurepedia.

2/ COLD OUTREACH

Developers like myself are scared of this task. But it works.

I made my first $1 online and grew a SaaS to $4,000 MRR

https://youtu.be/qj6Hy1u05NU

using cold emails.

Cold DM on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram works too — If you do it right. I

get 30 cold outreachs per day. 99% are generic. 99% end up in the trash.

Quantity doesn’t matter. Quality does. Spend hours carefully crafting your

message:

* Benefit-oriented

* Ultra personalised

* Short (5 sentences max)

Cold outreach works best if you’re doing high-ticket clients or B2B.

If you can afford it, sponsor niche newsletters (like mine, but I don’t do

sponsorships, sorry!). It’s a clever way to do cold outreach at scale without

being salesy.

3/ BUILD AN AUDIENCE

It changed my life.

But unlike the other marketing channels, it takes a lot of time and it’s not for

everyone.

This part could be a book, so here’s the 80/20:

1. Pick a platform where you’re comfortable sharing your work: Twitter if you

like writing, Instagram if you’re good with photos, YouTube if you prefer

videos.

2. Build cool stuff. People need a reason to follow you.

3. Communicate using the platform’s code. Learn from creators who are already

successful.

4. Respect people’s time. Too short is better than too long.

5. Find your signature: Start by getting inspired by others, shine by being

you.

4/ CODE, CODE, CODE

This is for you if you’re a developer who can’t close VSCode.

* Build free tools you can launch anywhere and go viral

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/marketing-for-product-obsessed-developers

* Rank hundreds of pages on Google, for free, with pSEO

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-grow-a-micro-startup-with-programmatic-seo

If you tried all the strategies above but none is working, it’s usually one of

these:

1. Your product doesn’t solve a real problem, consider moving on

2. Your landing page copy isn’t converting, improve it

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-write-a-landing-page-that-converts

Your first endeavor won’t magically be a success. But if you show up for long

enough, luck will find you.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 2,200+

developers.

2. DataFast

Grow your startup with actionable data.

3. IndiePage

Join 3,000+ solopreneurs and showcase your startups.

4. PoopUp

Turn your visitors into customers with wake-up call popups.

5. ZenVoice

https://bookscalculator.com/

Stripe invoices, without the fee.

How to get customers with programmatic SEO

You don't need an audience or a marketing budget to get visitors. Here's how to grow a startup for free when you're a solopreneur who loves coding.What’s Programmatic SEO?1. Find 1 keyword2. Build a webpage empire3. Rank on Google

Imagine making money while you sleep… with 0 followers and $0 in marketing.

Sounds like I’m selling you a get-rich-quick course. Hold on!

This is just a guide about how I get 300 visitors a day from Google, for free,

using programmatic SEO.

WHAT’S PROGRAMMATIC SEO?

Programmatic SEO (pSEO) is a marketing strategy to rank on Google for a group of

long-tail keywords related to 1 main keyword.

You use programming to build a skeleton. And you fill it with content, usually

generated programmatically too. In other words, SEO for features-addict

developers.

That’s how I got

* 15,600 visitors on BooksCalculator

* 9,000 visitors on GamifyList

https://gamifylist.com/

* 4,500 visitors on WorkbookPDF

https://workbookpdf.com/

I built them once and never touched them again. All free traffic from Google.

1. FIND 1 KEYWORD

Let’s use a real example.

Our business is a directory of rage rooms — like TripAdvisor — to help people

find the best place to smash away stress.

The business model?

1. Get traffic on autopilot

2. Show ads and profit

3. Move to Bali

Let’s skip the last part and focus on getting traffic with pSEO.

First, you need 1 keyword with:

* Keyword Difficulty (KD) lower than 20. It requires 10 backlinks or less

required to rank on Google

* Search volume superior to 500 per month in 1 country (3x this for worldwide

searches)

Ahref's free keyword generator tool

https://ahrefs.com/keyword-generator/

shows you exactly that. And guess what? The keyword “rage room” is (almost)

perfect.

KD is a bit high for a start, it’s just an example

Second, we need numerous long-tail keywords (at least 20).

There’s a high volume of searches for “rage rooms in [city]” and a low keyword

difficulty. Let’s build around these keywords.

2. BUILD A WEBPAGE EMPIRE

We want to create 1 webpage per long tail keyword.

There are 333 cities with over 100,000 people in the USA. Let’s assume there are

1000 rage rooms (random guess).

Here’s what our website structure looks like:

* / → main welcome page (1 webpage)

* /[city] / → all rage rooms in [city] (1 skeleton, 333 webpages)

* /rage-room/[rage room name] → a rage room page (1 skeleton, 1000 webpages)

A. CREATE A SKELETON

A skeleton is an HTML mold. Add some data, and you have a unique webpage.

My product WorkbookPDF has 1 skeleton for 25 pages:

https://workbookpdf.com/free/[language]

For instance, the skeleton for the /[city] route (the 333 webpages with all rage

rooms in [city]) would look like this:

* H1: “The [total] best rage rooms in [city]”

* Description: “Explore [city]’s top rage rooms! Find the perfect spot to smash

away stress and have a blast. From [district_1] to [district_2], we've got

you covered. Let the fun begin!”

We want to build as many valuable pages as possible. Pretend you’re searching

for a rage room in New York. What do you want to see?

* The list of rage rooms, sorted by Google Maps stars

* The price per hour and the type of objects you can break

* A button to book a rage room

The list goes on. Search for patterns while crafting the experience of the

end-user. By building 3 HTML skeletons, we can have 1334 web pages ranking on

Google.

BooksCalculator has 100+ pages ranking for “How long to read [pages_number]?”

B. COLLECT GOOD DATA

We need rich data to build valuable web pages and rank on Google. For example:

* 333 cities

* City name

* City photo

* Popular districts

* 1000 rages rooms

* Business name

* Starting price

* Reviews

Most of our data could be obtained using Google Maps API.

To get richer data, outsource the data collection for a few hundred dollars

and/or use ChatGPT for some parts, like the meta description.

For GamifyList, I spent $150 to collect the best 600 gamification apps from a VA

C. OPTIMIZE YOUR SEO

Once you have 1334 webpages built with your skeleton and the data, make them

SEO-friendly

* The long tail keyword should be in the title and <h1> tags, at least

* The images should have an alt text, good size, and lazy loaded

* Links and buttons should have titles

Lighthouse

https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/lighthouse/blipmdconlkpinefehnmjammfjpmpbjk

(Google Chrome) is your best friend.

Optimize for the long tail keywords, and add them at different strategic

locations.

Don’t stuff keywords though. Only add them where it matters for users.

Other marketing channels to get customers and grow your micro startup:

* Launch on Reddit

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-reddit

* Launch on Hacker News

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-hacker-news

* Launch on Product Hunt

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-product-hunt

* Free tools marketing

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/marketing-for-product-obsessed-developers

3. RANK ON GOOGLE

We need around 10 backlinks to start ranking on Google.

A. LAUNCH

The easiest way to start is to launch on Product Hunt which gives you a follow

link, regardless of the upvotes. Nice!

LogoFast was reshared in many newsletters after the launch

Platforms like Hacker News, Twitter & Reddit work too. It’s a nofollow link, but

people might reshare the website in their newsletter or blog.

B. BUY BACKLINKS

If you’re serious about the project, investing in backlinks is a great way to

kickstart the ranking.

You can either purchase a listing in a popular directory, like TIAAFT

https://theresanaiforthat.com/

or buy a listing of sites to submit yours, like BACKL.IO

https://backl.io/directory

C. SUBMIT TO SEARCH CONSOLE

Verify your domain name in the Google Search Console.

Then manually request for a few page indexing. It makes Google index your

website faster.

Search for a URL and click “Request Indexing”

Now, wait. Indexing is fast, but ranking for keywords takes 3 to 6 months.

You will get traffic from Google on autopilot, for free. Monetize it with a

product or ads and you make money when you sleep.

If you’re a developer who loves coding too much (like me) check out my guide

about growing a startup with free tools

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/marketing-for-product-obsessed-developers.

PS: Thanks to Danny

https://twitter.com/dannypostmaa/status/1646368426246680579

who taught me everything about pSEO. My article is a wrapper around his

knowledge. Thanks to Elias

https://twitter.com/illyism

who kickstarted the SEO for one of my projects.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,800+

developers.

2. DataFast

Grow your startup with actionable data.

3. IndiePage

Join 3,000+ solopreneurs and showcase your startups.

4. PoopUp

Turn your visitors into customers with wake-up call popups.

5. ZenVoice

Stripe invoices, without the fee.

I made $250,000 selling JavaScript

When I launched ShipFast, I told my wife we’d be lucky to make $100.Background Elements of success

When I launched ShipFast

I told my wife we’d be lucky to make $100.

5 months later, the product made a quarter million dollars at 90% profit.

Here’s why (I think) my code boilerplate worked.

Estimated reading time: 3 min 34 sec

SOLOPRENEUR UPDATE

My new SaaS startup is live 🎉

ZenVoice

https://twitter.com/marc_louvion

— Stripe invoices, without the fee: Let your customers generate and download

invoices, while you focus on your startup.

Get the lifetime deal at $50 off during the launch 🚀

BACKGROUND

In November 2021, I joined the community of programmers building small startups

in public on Twitter

In August 2023, I shipped almost 20 side-projects and grew an audience of 35,000

people. 10 of my products made money. I sold 3 of them for $50,000. The others

were making me $4,000/month. Reasonable salary when you live in Bali.

All my projects and revenue

https://www.marclou.com/

To ship faster, I spent a week building a code boilerplate with landing page

components, Stripe payments, user login, etc. I launched on Product Hunt and

made $6,000 in 48 hours

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/usd6000-of-profit-in-48-hours.

Part of the success is luck, but keep in mind that I was in the game for 2 years

— with an audience and proof of work.

ELEMENTS OF SUCCESS

The ShipFast growth launched hundreds of boilerplates. (It became a joke on

Twitter so I made a video

https://x.com/marc_louvion/status/1732015492788089142

But none came close to ShipFast’s revenue. Here’s my take:

1. FIRST MOVE ADVANTAGE

Being first in entrepreneurship is a competitive advantage. First, people like

new stuff. Second, every other product will be compared to yours — it’s free

marketing.

In August 2023, there was no go-to boilerplate for NextJS — the most popular

React framework.

People talked about ShipFast on Twitter, blogs, and newsletters because it was

new. The website was getting 500 to 1,500 daily visitors without spending a dime

on ads.

The next trendy boilerplate will be for another platform than the web. visionOS

maybe?

2. EMOTIONAL OUTCOME

I can’t stress enough how important emotions are in marketing, especially if

you’re a product-obsessed developer like me.

People don’t care about features. People want money, status, and respect.

ShipFast was the first boilerplate to tie a product to an actual goal: Launch

your startup, get profitable, and quit your 9/5.

3. REAL SOCIAL PROOF

Thanks to the emotional outcome, customers of ShipFast are pumped to get

started. Their motivation drives results: they actually launch startups and make

money.

The testimonials on the site

reflect that perfectly — Videos of coders in their bedrooms who just experienced

a life transformation.

It’s reinforced by my story. In 1.5 years, I went from 0 to $4,000/month with an

audience by shipping apps fast.

4. UNFAIR ADVANTAGE

You get attention when you make $55,000/month as a solo founder.

Newsletters, retweets from bigger accounts, YouTubers. People spread the word.

It brings traffic to my site, which increases revenue and makes more people

spread the word.

In hindsight, it’s easy to understand why it worked. But 5 months ago, I had no

clue what I was doing.

Your best bet to become profitable is to show up daily and produce something: a

tweet, an app, a video. You’ll be surprised by what can happen in a few months.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,600+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Join 3,000+ solopreneurs and showcase your startups.

4. PoopUp

Turn your visitors into customers with wake-up call popups.

5. ZenVoice

https://www.youtube.com/live/pM4LOw5xFcE

Stripe invoices, without the fee.

Rewriting 3 tweets

My 𝕏 account grew by 60,000 followers in 2023. It’s not earning money, but writing that had the biggest impact.Tweet 1 — First impression mattersTweet 2 — Just Give Me a ReasonTweet 3 — To the point

My 𝕏 account grew by 60,000 followers in 2023.

It’s not earning money, but writing that had the biggest impact.

I’ll share what I learned by rewriting 3 of your tweets.

Estimated reading time: 2 min 34 sec

BUILD-IN-PUBLIC UPDATE

Since last Monday, I’ve been live streaming while building a new SaaS startup.

It’s harder to code, but I’m more productive because I can’t procrastinate 😅

I’ll keep streaming on Monday to finish the product!

https://www.youtube.com/live/pM4LOw5xFcE?si=xeNPb8UsjS9c_ZUJ&utm_source=marclou.beehiiv.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=rewriting-3-tweets

https://www.youtube.com/live/pM4LOw5xFcE?si=xeNPb8UsjS9c_ZUJ&utm_source=marclou.beehiiv.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=rewriting-3-tweetsDay

1 stream

got 5,200 views 🤯

TWEET 1 — FIRST IMPRESSION MATTERS

WHAT’S MISSING

1. The screenshot is low quality

2. The text structure is off: I use energy before I start reading

3. The meaning comes late: I have to read 80% of the tweet (202 characters) to

grasp it

REWRITING

There’s a lot of noise out there, the first impression matters:

* Use simple structures (listicles, before/after)

* Convey meaning in the first sentence

* Add space between lines

I started following Justin Welsh

https://twitter.com/thejustinwelsh

in 2022 and my writing has drastically improved.

TWEET 2 — JUST GIVE ME A REASON

WHAT’S MISSING

Kyzo is doing a great job of telling the story intro. The first sentence is a

bit long and intense, but it’s OK — I can relate.

But then? There is no incentive to click on the thread to learn more.

REWRITING

People are busy.

Reading a thread, clicking a link, or even liking a tweet is a lot to ask.

Wave a clear outcome to convert the attention you get.

TWEET 3 — TO THE POINT

WHAT’S MISSING

The first line got my attention. And the structure is great.

But then I’m facing 228 words telling 3 different stories. Each should have its

own tweet.

Also, the screenshot is too hard to read. I wrote a few words last week to make

catchy screenshots

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-make-catchy-screenshots.

REWRITING

I would write 3 tweets instead:

1. Inspirational one-liner: “I just got my first customer”

2. The tweet above explains how to get the most out of unsatisfied users

3. Educational tweet about how to scrap Shopify stores (this is interesting,

and could even be a product)

The easiest way to grow on 𝕏 is to improve your writing. Look at what’s working

in the feed, find patterns, and replicate.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,500+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Showcase your startups and get more customers. Join 3,000+ solopreneurs!

4. ByeDispute

Don't let a dispute get you banned from Stripe.

5. ZenVoice

https://www.youtube.com/@marc-lou/videos

Stripe invoices without the fee

Make catchy screenshots to grow on 𝕏

Visuals get you heaps of attention on 𝕏, if done right.1. Zoom, even too much2. Center the most important information3. Explain when necessary 4. Favor square and portrait format

If done right, visuals get you heaps of attention on 𝕏.

And when you’re building in public, there’s much worth sharing.

Let’s review the best practices for attention-grabbing screenshots with the

Stripe example below.

Estimated reading time: 2 min 47 sec

Let’s turn this raw screenshot into a tweet

BUILD-IN-PUBLIC UPDATE

I just started sharing what I do & learn as a solopreneur on my YouTube channel

One video a week — until I burn out 😄

1. ZOOM, EVEN TOO MUCH

The width of a tweet is smaller than 500 pixels (13.2 centimeters or the length

of a pen).

Compared to your computer screen, the content will be less readable. People

won’t click and zoom.

Ditch everything that’s not crucial. Zoom until you can’t.

Zoom to capture only the interesting part

2. CENTER THE MOST IMPORTANT INFORMATION

The further away from the center, the less people will notice.

Information at the edges of the screenshots is usually ignored.

3. EXPLAIN WHEN NECESSARY

Screenshots that don’t convey any meaning get lost in the void. Use clear and

visual explanations for people to understand your message.

* Use arrows to tell people where to look

* Underline to showcase information

* Write text to explain the meaning

Screenshot tools like CleanShotX or Xnapper have features to help you do this

without design skills.

After getting hooked by a screenshot, people want to learn more

4. FAVOR SQUARE AND PORTRAIT FORMAT

It gets more real estate on the 𝕏 feed.

If you’re working on a laptop, resize your window as a mobile before taking a

screenshot. The format will be more suitable for a tweet.

Now you have my attention, let me read the thread

AVOID BACKGROUNDS

Colorful/gradient backgrounds in screenshots are a bit overrated.

* They distract from the actual content.

* They reduce readability and make the image cramped.

* Fancy backgrounds aren't meaningful for analytics or bill screenshots.

I only add backgrounds to success screenshots with minimal content, like revenue

or followers milestones.

My rule of thumb for anything I create (websites, videos, tweets): Convey

meaning within 2 seconds.

I hope the best practices above will help you get more attention. Tag me when

you tweet, and I’ll check if it can be improved. Have a great weekend!

— Marc

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,500+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Showcase your startups and get more customers. Join 3,000+ solopreneurs!

4. ByeDispute

Don't let a dispute get you banned from Stripe.

5. ZenVoice

Stripe invoices without the fee

How to launch a startup on Product Hunt

Among the 21 products I launched, 13 got the Top Product badge and one ranked #2 Product of the Month.But first… Is Product Hunt dying?Inbound upvotes Outbound upvotes When should I launch?Is it time to launch?

Among the 21 products I launched, 13 got the Top Product badge and one ranked #2

Product of the Month.

I also got the Maker of the Year 2023 award.

Here’s everything I learned about Product Hunt — as a solopreneur competing

against VC-backed startups.

Estimated reading time: 6 min 13 sec

BUILD-IN-PUBLIC UPDATE

My new course generated $6,000 in presales in December.

I just finished recording all the videos and… it’s now live!

Introducing LaunchVir.al

https://launchvir.al

Learn how to grow your startup with viral videos. The $70 off launch discount

expires on Monday.

BUT FIRST… IS PRODUCT HUNT DYING?

This is a recurring question on Twitter, and unfortunately, there’s some truth

to it — Product Hunt isn’t as big as it used to be.

But it remains one of the best places to launch a startup:

* 4M monthly high-quality visitors

* One of the biggest tech newsletter

* Massive media coverage

Unlike any other platform, if you work on the launch, you’ll get predictable

traffic and grow your customer base.

Let’s get some upvotes.

INBOUND UPVOTES

There are 2 ways to get upvotes.

Inbound upvotes are given by Product Hunt users who casually browse the site.

Your listing should be on point:

* Your startup name should be crystal clear. I wrote about making names people

remember [https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-name-a-startup].

* Your tagline should be short, straight to the point, and possibly trigger an

emotional reaction. You can use trendy tech words like GPT-4 but don’t go too

deep. Designers, product managers, and marketers must understand your

tagline.

* Animate your logo as a GIF, it’s such an easy way to get attention because

few are doing it

* Images in the gallery should be extremely concise, like a YouTube thumbnail.

One feature per image. Zoom on the feature until you can’t before taking the

screenshot.

When your listing is scheduled, write the first comment.

You’re a solopreneur, not a VC startup — this is inspiring, so write about it.

Explain why you came up with the idea.

Product Hunt comments section support markdown

The comment section supports markdown. Add a link to your product name to

maximize traffic. I also recommend plugging your Twitter to build an audience

and make the next launches easier.

Finally, if you learned anything valuable when building your startup, create a

Product Hunt conversation on the day of the launch. Plug your launch link at the

end. People are already browsing the site, it’s an easy upvote.

OUTBOUND UPVOTES

You’ll compete against VC startups, so you need help from outside Product Hunt —

outbound upvotes.

1. TWITTER

Twitter is the biggest source of outbound upvotes you can get because our

community is big and very supportive.

Within the first 4 hours after the beginning of the launch, make a tweet to

announce it, and include the link.

There are more makers than ever, so your tweet will need to stand out. I always

add a launch video: Each tweet would get 300+ likes and my startup gets a

Product Hunt badge — even when I had 1,000 followers. I made LaunchViral

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-reddit, and Hacker

to help you replicate this.

Who said ads can’t be fun?

Retweet the launch tweet a few hours later.

I also schedule 2 or 3 tweets later in the day — not related to the launch — so

that hopefully one goes viral and newcomers discover my profile (don’t forget to

pin your launch tweet).

2. WEBSITE BADGE

Add a Product Hunt-branded badge to your landing page which links back to your

launch page.

A subtle badge — fixed at the bottom-left on desktop

Then launch your product on other sites like Indie Hackers, Reddit

News [https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-hacker-news].

If one of your posts goes well, you’ll upvotes from your landing page badge.

Other marketing channels to get customers and grow your micro startup:

* Launch on Reddit

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-reddit

* Launch on Hacker News

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-hacker-news

* Free tools marketing

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/marketing-for-product-obsessed-developers

* Programmatic SEO

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-grow-a-micro-startup-with-programmatic-seo

WHEN SHOULD I LAUNCH?

Monday to Friday are busier. More traffic, but more competition.

If you’re chasing for the badge, launch on Sunday.

If you want traffic, launch on Monday (VC startups don’t work on Monday 0:01 AM)

IS IT TIME TO LAUNCH?

Get social proof first. Ask a few customers/users and add their testimonials to

your landing page.

Then, launch as soon as possible, especially if you’re getting started,

The first Product Hunt launch is unlikely to be a big hit. And that’s OK. It’s a

learning process.

You can re-launch a few months later after adding new features. You can also

launch free tools promoting your product

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/marketing-for-product-obsessed-developers to

sharpen your skills.

Meanwhile, you build an audience and each launch will be easier.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,500+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Join 3,000+ solopreneurs and showcase your startups.

4. PoopUp

Turn your visitors into customers with wake-up call popups.

5. ZenVoice

https://www.producthunt.com/golden-kitty-awards/bootstrapped-small-teams

Stripe invoices without the fee

How to get customers with free tool marketing

Grow your micro SaaS or AI tool, and fulfill your inner builderFree tool marketing How to find ideas2 key factors to get paying users

I never enjoyed marketing.

But I’d never earn $50K/month without doing some kind of marketing.

I found a better alternative by making free tools that fulfill my inner builder.

Estimated reading time: 4 min 13 sec

BUILD-IN-PUBLIC UPDATE

My free logo maker —LogoFast— was nominated for the Product Hunt Golden Kitty

Awards 2023

If you liked it, I’d love your support!

FREE TOOL MARKETING

I am a developer and I love building apps. But I also need marketing to pay the

bills.

Free tool marketing is symbiosis.

It consists of launching free and viral mini-apps to promote your main startup.

AI Tweet Generator (free) by Tweet Hunter (paid)

Free tool marketing works because:

* It expands your audience to a wider market.

* You rank for new SEO keywords.

* It’s sharable so people spread the word on TikTok, for instance.

* You grow an audience by launching often.

* It creates a good first impression to warm up potential customers.

* Your inner builder is motivated to work.

User Persona went viral on TikTok adding 226% revenue for MakerBox

Some guidelines for the best results:

* The app must be free, that’s how you create a viral loop.

* One feature is enough. It must be super simple.

* The name should tell exactly what the app does. That’s how people remember

and search on Google.

* The experience must start on the homepage. Visitors shouldn’t sign up or

click links.

* The app can be hosted on your main website, but it’s best to give it a

dedicated domain.

LogoFa.st

http://LogoFa.st

is also hosted on ShipFa.st/tools/logo-fast

http://ShipFa.st/tools/logo-fast

The canonical URL points to the latter to boost the main site’s domain

authority.

Other marketing channels to get customers and grow your micro startup:

* Launch on Reddit

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-reddit

* Launch on Hacker News

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-hacker-news

* Launch on Product Hunt

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-product-hunt

* Programmatic SEO

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-grow-a-micro-startup-with-programmatic-seo

HOW TO FIND IDEAS

Take a standalone feature of your main startup and make a free version of it.

This works well if you already have traction because you know people need that

feature.

It’s also a good strategy to validate potential features. Instead of cluttering

your main product, launch a standalone feature as a free tool.

You’ll get more traffic, and you can still add the feature later if the market

validates it.

Ahrefs’s domain authority checker feature is also available in their paid plan

Another strategy consists of getting into your customer’s journey and thinking

about what they’ll need before using your product.

After realizing it’s possible to read 19 books a year with a 15-minute daily

habit, people might want to sign up for a habit tracker

2 KEY FACTORS TO GET PAYING USERS

#1 — PROMOTE YOUR STARTUP IN A SEAMLESS WAY

The simplest way to convert traffic from your free tools is to advertise your

startup. A simple ad placement can get up to 10% Click-Through-Rate.

You can pump these numbers up when the free tool seamlessly embeds into your

customer’s journey, so the promotion feels like an extension of your free tool.

This is a free tool to show how much can be achieved in a year with tiny habits.

It automatically imports the habits when the user signs up for the habit

tracker. The conversion rate is 30% (traffic on the free tool to traffic on the

habit tracker)

Alternatively, you can collect emails and market through a follow-up sequence.

#2 — LAUNCH, PROFIT, REPEAT.

With free tools marketing, it’s common to get media coverage and go viral on

TikTok thanks to the embedded virality.

Launch everywhere. Hacker News

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-hacker-news, Reddit https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-reddit, Twitter,

Product Hunt

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-product-hunt. The

more noise you make, the higher the revenue.

I launched 7 free tools in a year. Thanks to viral launch videos

each product goes viral on 𝕏, gets a Product Hunt badge, and is reshared on

other social media.

Once you’ve launched, move on to the next free tool.

Each launch will make more noise, increase your daily traffic, and grow your

startup — while keeping your inner builder satisfied.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,500+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Showcase your startups and get more customers. Join 3,000+ solopreneurs!

4. ByeDispute

Don't let a dispute get you banned from Stripe.

5. ZenVoice

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/ditch-your-free-plan.

Stripe invoices without the fee

7 lessons from building 9 startups in 2023

I was lucky in 2023 — my income jumped from $1,500 in January, to $65,000 in

November.

But the real outcome was the knowledge I acquired.

Here are 7 lessons I wish I knew when I started the solopreneur journey.

Estimated reading time: 2 min 36 sec

BUILDING IN PUBLIC UPDATE

My logo maker LogoFast

https://logofa.st/

got the full awards from Product Hunt 🤩

Less time designing, more time shipping!

1. DON’T MARRY YOUR IDEA

Out of the 20+ startups I launched, only 1 made good money and grew.

It’s the same pattern for most solopreneurs who made life-changing money.

When it’s time to focus on your startup, you’ll know.

2. DITCH FREE PLANS

Only 3% of users upgrade to paid plans

You need 10,000 users to make $3,000 ($10/mo subscription). That’s an insane

amount of work for a solopreneur.

“Grow first, monetize later” is for VC-backed startups.

3. SUBSCRIPTIONS HEADACHE IS REAL

I killed a startup by swapping one-time payments for recurring ones.

Monthly passive income is good for business owners only. Users are much more

reluctant to subscriptions.

Start with one-time payments. Add subscriptions if there’s a demand.

4. SWAP VITAMINS FOR PAINKILLERS

100,000 visitors on my nice-to-have product website made $6,000.

100,000 visitors on my must-have product website made $100,000.

Unless you have an audience, avoid note-taking apps or habit trackers. People

buy solutions to painful problems.

5. EMOTIONS SELL

Few care about a NextJS boilerplate. But many care about a shortcut to ship

startups faster and reach financial independence.

Rephrase your copy to trigger an emotional reaction.

6. FIRST IMPRESSIONS MATTER

In our digital world, it’s the headline of your website, the thumbnail of your

YouTube video, or the first sentence of your tweet.

That one sentence has more impact on your conversion rate than anything else.

7. FOOD + SLEEP + WORKOUT = PSYCHIATRIST

As a solopreneur, you’re wearing 10 hats (developer + copywriter + accountant…).

Burnout is around the corner.

* Eat healthy, avoid carbs, quit sugar and alcohol

* Exercise daily, even if it’s an easy 15-minute workout

* Make sleep your #1 priority. Sleep at the same time every day in a dark room

at 18°. Don’t drink coffee 10 hours before bed, don’t drink water 3 hours

before bed, dim lights 1 hour before bed.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,500+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Showcase your startups and get more customers. Join 3,000+ solopreneurs!

4. ByeDispute

Don't let a dispute get you banned from Stripe.

5. ZenVoice

Stripe invoices without the fee

How to name a startup

The first impression matters. Let’s talk about making up an unforgettable name people will search on Google.

This newsletter is written 30,000 feet in the air—I’m going to Taiwan.

I used to spend days brainstorming for a startup name, to finally come up with

something nobody understood…

Let’s talk about making up an unforgettable name. First impression matters.

Estimated reading time: 3 min 09 sec

Here are 3 common ways to name a startup:

1. A super easy and short name—like Stripe or Butter. ChatGPT is good at making

them.

2. SEO-oriented names—like HeadshotPro.

3. Benefit-oriented names—like NomadList or Tweet Hunter.

Let’s focus on the last one. It’s the easiest way to be memorable as a

solopreneur with limited resources. The name is usually made of 2 short words.

One word should be super relatable to your customers. Speak a language they use

and understand.

* Tweet Hunter is for professionals on Twitter

* ShipFast is for indie makers

* OurBabyAI is for couples

The other word should signal a change in your customer’s life. It shouldn’t be

about your product at all. Why is your product useful? How will it change my

life?

* ShipFast: Finally launch that side project

* CleanShotX: Take beautiful screenshots with no skills

* NomadList: Go nomad, change your life

Now you have 2 words, find 5 short synonyms for each. Quick? Fast. Launch? Ship.

When you have 2 lists of 5 synonyms, ask ChatGPT to create all combinations.

Remove combinations that are over 10 words. Keep it simple.

Pick your 3 favorites and send them to a few friends: “What’s your favorite?”

Their answers don’t matter, yet. After 24 hours, remove your messages from the

chat and ask “Which one do you remember?” Your new startup name is the most

remembered. That’s it!

Don’t spend too much time on this. A name won’t make a startup. Pick one, and

start building!

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,500+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Showcase your startups and get more customers. Join 3,000+ solopreneurs!

4. ByeDispute

Don't let a dispute get you banned from Stripe.

5. ZenVoice

https://bestofshowhn.com/2023

Stripe invoices without the fee

How to launch a startup on Hacker News

What I’ve learned after 5 viral posts and 25,000 visitors from Hacker News.Show HNI made…The spiritTell the outcomeContributeDon’ts

Hey, it’s Marc

When I started Twitter in November 2021, I experienced the void. 0 likes for

months.

After a post on Hacker News, I got my first customers, and I started to get

traction on Twitter.

Here’s what I’ve learned after 5 viral posts and 25,000 visitors from Hacker

News.

Estimated reading time: 3 min 18 sec

Hacker News stats

SHOW HN

There are many categories in Hackers News. Only one matters to us, makers: Show

Hacker News.

It’s a dedicated space for users to share their side projects. That’s where you

want to launch.

When you submit a post, add Show HN: to the title. The post will automatically

appear in the /newest category.

* Posts getting traction in /newest will be moved to /new for more visibility.

* Posts getting traction in /new will be moved to / for maximum visibility.

I MADE…

People don’t care about a big corporation getting richer. People care about you,

side hustler, shipping apps after your 9 to 5.

Make it personal. Start your post with I made or After 6 months coding…

THE SPIRIT

Developers and tech enthusiasts use Hacker News. Speak the language: I made an

SEO-optimized site entirely with GPT-4

Anything else will be ignored (course, coaching, e-commerce). Unless… you make

it techy. For instance, a habit tracker stands no chance—but a gamified habit

tracker does.

That’s how I got 11,000 visitors for my first startup (Habit Garden) and the

first customers.

TELL THE OUTCOME

Look at the list of the best Show HN posts of 2023

They all share one thing: You know what you’ll get by clicking on it.

What makes your product/service special? Why is it worth my time?

CONTRIBUTE

There’s a lot of spam and people trying to promote themselves without

contributing.

Add a comment to your post. Explain briefly who you are and why you built the

product. Ask for feedback.

Engage with users who comment. People say Hacker News is full of negativity, but

once you show you’re a real person, users are much more friendly.

Other marketing channels to get customers and grow your micro startup:

* Launch on Reddit

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-reddit

* Launch on Product Hunt

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-launch-a-startup-on-product-hunt

* Free tools marketing

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/marketing-for-product-obsessed-developers

* Programmatic SEO

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-grow-a-micro-startup-with-programmatic-seo

DON’TS

DON’T ASK FOR UPVOTES.

At least not directly. I believe there’s a real person who decides which posts

get featured. They know when a user arrives from a direct link to your

submission.

If you want support from your friends, tell them to find your submission by

browsing Hacker News, not by sending a direct link. Keep in mind that multiple

upvotes from accounts with 0 karma look suspicious.

DON’T OVERTHINK IT.

Hacker News is very random. Unlike Product Hunt, there isn’t much you can do to

influence the success of a post.

DON’T USE EMOJIS.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,500+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Showcase your startups and get more customers. Join 3,000+ solopreneurs!

4. ByeDispute

Don't let a dispute get you banned from Stripe.

5. ZenVoice

Stripe invoices without the fee

How to write a landing page that sells

5 mistakes to avoid to write a damn good landing page1. Your brand (name + logo) doesn’t matter2. Your headline does 80% of the job3. People don’t trust you yet4. Let me try it! 5. OK—Can I buy it now?

I created 20+ startups and here's what you need to convert visitors into

customers: Create a damn good hero section on your landing page.

Here are 5 mistakes I see solopreneurs make, and how to fix them.

Estimated reading time: 3 min 46 sec.

1. YOUR BRAND (NAME + LOGO) DOESN’T MATTER

I see websites with a massive 56px brand name and enormous logo in the center.

Yes, your brand matters. But only to you.

Internet is crowded. People have no time. They aren’t looking for a new brand

with a cool name. They want solutions to their problems. And your brand name

isn’t one of them (unless you’re Nike or Apple).

Let’s fix it:

* Make your brand name and logo smaller. 18 pixels max. for the font, and 32

pixels max. for the logo.

* Alight them at the top left corner.

* Make your brand name super simple (i.e. Zoom, Stripe, Butter) or

objective-oriented (ShipFast, MakeLogo, HeadshotPro).

2. YOUR HEADLINE DOES 80% OF THE JOB

This is the first part of your site that people will read. It’s like the first

Tinder profile picture or a YouTube thumbnail. Miss it, and they’ll leave.

Let’s fix it:

* Every site needs a headline (I’ve seen some without).

* The font size should be BIG. 36px to 48px is a good font size

* The headline copy should answer this question: Why should a stranger stay on

your site for more than 10 seconds? Write about the pain it's relieving, the

problem it's solving, or the pleasure it's giving. This could be a dedicated

issue, let me know if you want to read more.

* Align your headline in the center or on the left if you have a product demo

on the right.

* Write 5 variations. Send them to 5 friends. After 24 hours, delete the

message. Ask which one they remember. Pick that one.

3. PEOPLE DON’T TRUST YOU YET

Asking for money, or even just an email is a lot on the internet. There have

been too many scams and humans are risk-averse. If there’s no social proof on

your site, the conversion rate will plummet.

Let’s fix it:

* Don’t call your users, users. They are students, product managers, or

solopreneurs.

* Don’t fake it at all. People are really good at spotting suspicious stuff. If

it seems suspicious, people will leave in a second. Confused shoppers don’t

buy.

* Get testimonials before you launch. DM the right people on Twitter, post in

the right subreddit, or ask relevant friends.

4. LET ME TRY IT!

Echoing the previous point: Asking for money, or even just an email is a lot on

the internet.

Is it worth my time? People want to see what’s in it for them.

This is how you show them:

* Add a demo of your product on the right side, or in the center, under the

headline/supporting headline/CTA block.

* An image is good. A video is better. A demo is best.

* Remove clutter, especially if your product is complex. You just need to show

the most important feature.

5. OK—CAN I BUY IT NOW?

Visitors on your landing page aren’t users. They are just a little bit

interested in what you have to offer. Make it very easy for them to start once

they’re ready.

Let’s fix the Call-To-Action:

* Your CTA should be a big button of the same color at different locations of

your site.

* Don’t add other CTAs. If you have a log-in button, use a neutral color or a

link.

* Don’t bury your call-to-action button somewhere on the page. Add one in the

hero section, usually under the headline/supporting headline block.

* Avoid Get Started or Sign Up. Remind the benefits to the user. Use this

formula: Verb + Benefit. Learn Korean now, Get your headshots, Make my logo.

* Answer objections in a small paragraph under the CTA:

* I bet it’s expensive → Start for free

* Another subscription… → One-time payment

Finally, launch your website as soon as possible and find out how people react.

If there isn’t much conversion, try tweaking your headline for the most impact.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,500+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Showcase your startups and get more customers. Join 3,000+ solopreneurs!

4. ByeDispute

Don't let a dispute get you banned from Stripe.

5. ZenVoice

https://shipfa.st/leaderboard

Stripe invoices without the fee

Part 3 Mindset

I built websites for 900 days without quitting

I made peanuts for 18 months. But I showed up daily until luck found me.

I made peanuts and tweeted in the void for 18 months.

But I showed up daily — even when I didn’t feel good — until luck found me.

Here’s how I stay motivated:

SOLOPRENEUR UPDATE

I just shipped a new feature from Japan 🇯🇵

Introducing... 🥁 … ShipFast Leaderboards!

* 🥇 Compete with 2,000+ makers

* 🌟 Feature your product

* 🧑‍💻 Stay motivated

I ship small

Some solopreneurs spend years working on a startup until they get lucky. I did

that and burned out.

My monkey brain wants quick results. So I never spend more than a few weeks

building a new product.

No unicorn master plan. Just one feature.

I play with friends

I started Twitter at the same time as Dan

Every day, I’d check if my tweets overperformed his (it usually did, sorry

buddy).

My monkey brain wants to play. So I compare myself with other solopreneurs at

the same stage.

No jealousy. Just healthy competition (we all win in the end).

I quit early

Most of my 28 products made at least $1. I’m tempted to focus and grow each of

them.

But I move on to the next startup idea after 10,000 visitors (unless it’s a hit,

like ShipFast).

My monkey brain hates losing. But I’d rather quit too early and miss an

opportunity than quit too late and burn out.

Entrepreneurship is a marathon. Those who don’t quit are rewarded in the end.

Show up daily — 1 hour is enough to build a habit. Create something small.

Compete with friends. Don’t quit. And trust the process. I root for you.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 2,200+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Join 3,000+ solopreneurs and showcase your startups.

4. PoopUp

Turn your visitors into customers with wake-up call popups.

5. ZenVoice

Stripe invoices, without the 0.4% fee.

Why you won’t find good startup ideas

If good ideas could be found, there would be a marketplace

Nutella was an accident.

During World War II, there wasn't enough cacao, so Pietro Ferrero tried making

chocolate with hazelnuts instead. He ended up creating the world's biggest

chocolate spread.

Successful startups are born by accident too.

It starts with the founder either playing with new technology, solving a problem

they have, or listening to what their customers want.

Put your work out there.

You don’t need a good idea to start. Write an article about what you learned

last year, rebuild your note-taking app, or send a cold email to a business.

The process of creating will help you discover problems.

Real problems that people would pay you to solve. In the end, you might create a

successful business you never even imagined.

Less thinking, more doing.

— Marc

PS: My solopreneur journey was an accident. I was bored so I played with AI and

created MakeLanding. MakeLanding created ShipFast. ShipFast created ZenVoice.

ZenVoice created PoopUp.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 2,200+

developers.

2. DataFast

Grow your startup with actionable data.

3. IndiePage

Join 3,000+ solopreneurs and showcase your startups.

4. ByeDispute

Don't let a dispute get you banned from Stripe.

5. ZenVoice

https://x.com/levelsio/status/1761423301312729209

Stripe invoices, without the fee.

I outsmart myself to be productive

How to love working so much, that everything else becomes a distraction1. The tribe 2. The system3. The carrot

Today is Sunday, 7:21 am in Bali.

I’m writing this newsletter instead of surfing (the waves are excellent).

There’s a force pulling me to work. It’s more addictive than my favorite sport.

How to love working so much, that everything else becomes a distraction?

SOLOPRENEUR UPDATE

Pieter Levels tweeted

about ZenVoice.

My friend Dan

told me: “PRODUCTIZE IT”.

So I launched PoopUp

in 3 days — Turn your website visitors into customers with wake-up call popups.

It made $922 in 24 hours.

1. THE TRIBE

We are the most social creatures on the planet.

Art, books, startups, and everything we create have a fundamental purpose: To

contribute to society and evolution.

We’re hard-wired to care what people say, to be curious, and to compete.

Twitter changed my life. I found people I admire and people I could compete

against. It created a powerful and healthy desire to grind.

You don’t have to build an audience (although it helps). Subreddits, Telegram

chats, and Discord communities let you connect with like-minded people to

leverage our social drive.

2. THE SYSTEM

You can trick the brain into working hard, but we’re still monkeys. We expect

our efforts to bring results, quickly.

I have no clue how much I’ll earn next week, or how many followers I’ll get.

But I know exactly what I’ll achieve:

* 1 YouTube video

* 1 newsletter issue

* 1 feature (or startup)

With a short deadline and controllable goals, I always fulfill my expectations,

and quitting is not an option.

3. THE CARROT

I lived like a cockroach with $1,000/month for 5 years. No one cared about my

work.

Family, friends, and random people became curious when I started to earn $50,000

per month.

I don’t care what money buys (I didn’t even get a new surfboard). But I care for

my work to be recognized.

Money gets attention. And attention drives motivation. Get paid for your work

(ditch free plans). It’s a powerful drive to get things done.

Throughout my life, I’ve quit countless times — because one of these 3 drivers

was missing.

It took 2 years to understand what pulls me to work. This issue summarizes it.

PS: I won’t ship startups for 3-6 months. I’m working on a project that’s

important to me. I’m a bit scared, but it’s the right thing to do, I guess.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,700+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Join 3,000+ solopreneurs and showcase your startups.

4. PoopUp

Turn your visitors into customers with wake-up call popups.

5. ZenVoice

Stripe invoices, without the fee.

I built a micro SaaS in 31 hours

On February 5th, 2024, I hit "Start Streaming" and built a micro SaaS startup — live on YouTube in just 31 hours.Getting the startup idea Building the MVPGetting the 1st customer

On February 5th, 2024, I hit "Start Streaming" and built a micro SaaS live on

YouTube in 31 hours.

The product has made almost $2,000 in just 5 days. Here's the entire journey

from idea to launch.

Estimated reading time: 3 min 11 sec

GETTING THE STARTUP IDEA

After I realized I paid Stripe $1,600 to create PDF invoices, I turned off the

option. Within days, my inbox was flooded with customers asking for invoices.

A pain with a money incentive is promising. So I searched for alternatives but I

couldn’t find any. And just like this, a new startup idea was born: A self-serve

invoicing tool for Stripe (now called ZenVoice

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-find-startup-ideas (TL;DR; think less,

I wrote more about getting ideas

build more).

BUILDING THE MVP

1. PRICING IS EVERYTHING

As a customer, that’s what you look at first, especially when you don’t

understand the product. As an entrepreneur, that’s how I pay the rent. So I

brainstorm pricing first.

I went with one-time payments because it’s almost free to run this startup:

* $49: Unlimited invoices for 1 Stripe account

* $69: Unlimited invoices for unlimited Stripe accounts

I only pay for bandwidth (<$1/month) and emails ($0.001 per email).

If a customer generates more than 49,000 invoices, I’m losing money. But this

will never happen for all customers.

There are 2 plans because people have no clue how much a tool like this costs.

Confused customers don't buy. The first plan ($49) is the anchor, so the second

one makes sense.

2. THAT ONE FEATURE

I had tons of features in mind. But I also remembered that 90% of startups

failed. So I have a rule to avoid wasting time (and eventually burning out):

1 startup = 1 feature

For ZenVoice, customers of my users should be able to generate invoices. That’s

it.

There’s no password reset form, invoice preview, or account deletion. But

there’s a feedback button so I know what users need instead of making a blind

guess.

3. THE LANDING PAGE IS AS IMPORTANT AS THE PRODUCT

On average, only 1 website visitors out of 100 will see your product.

I spent 11 hours on the landing page (37% of the time) to make sure it converts.

Here are the key elements I focused on:

* Problem agitation: Annoying notifications to remind potential customers why

they’re here.

Emails you’d get if you turn off Stripe Invoicing — it got Vercel’s CEO's

attention

https://x.com/marc_louvion/status/1760348752924352952

* Headline: A promise with an emotional outcome “Focus on your startup, not the

invoices”

* Demo video: I’m not a cold VC startup, so I demo the product and explain why

I built it

* Social proof: I let a few users beta test the product in exchange for a

testimonial

* Startup name: ZenVoice is easy to remember because it’s short and related to

the pain (in-voice)

I wrote more about making landing pages that sell

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-write-a-landing-page-that-converts.

GETTING THE 1ST CUSTOMER

To get the first visitors (and customers), I launch everywhere:

Product Hunt, Reddit, Hacker News, and Twitter have the most impact.

For each platform, I try to format the post for the user’s language. For

instance, I use cold tech words on Hacker News, and friendly vibes with emoji on

Product Hunt. I also made a launch skit to kickstart the post

https://x.com/marc_louvion/status/1759503527125323796

on Twitter.

I don’t know what’s next for ZenVoice, yet.

When it reaches 10,000 visitors (currently 7,600), I’ll look at just one metric:

$ per visitor. The worst I’ve had is $0.06 per visitor. The best is $0.93

(ShipFast

If ZenVoice $-per-visitor is above $0.5, I will focus. Otherwise, I’ll let it

run by itself, fix bugs, and move on to the next startup.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,600+

developers.

2. DataFast

Grow your startup with actionable data.

3. IndiePage

Showcase your startups and get more customers. Join 3,000+ solopreneurs!

4. ByeDispute

Don't let a dispute get you banned from Stripe.

5. ZenVoice

https://youtube.com/@marc-lou

Stripe invoices, without the fee.

How I built 21 products in 2 years

Speed is solopreneurs' best friend. Here is how to get ideas and build them fast.An idea, quickThe 24-hour startup

2017: I spent a year building a startup that made $0.

2023: I launched 10 products and made $263,000.

Speed is solopreneurs' best friend. Here is how to get ideas and build them

fast.

BUILD-IN-PUBLIC UPDATE

8 YouTube lives later, the micro startup is done!

Next week, I’ll stream the launch on Product Hunt, Twitter, Hacker News, etc.

Subscribe here to get notified

so you don’t miss it 🤩

AN IDEA, QUICK

The most successful products were built by solopreneurs scratching their itches.

Pieter Levels building NomadList while traveling the world is a great example.

There are tons of existing problems gravitating around you. Build a habit of

looking around. If you’re working 9/5, it’s the best place to explore. Search

for experiences that bother you. Or knowledge you wish you had.

If nothing comes, start something new. Try a new sport, start a new daily

routine, or acquire new skills. You can also solve universal problems:

Businesses want more revenue, and people want to be more productive. Finally,

you can upgrade a product you or your friends are using.

When you get started, ideas don’t matter. Building them does. You’ll discover

real problems and get tons of promising ideas.

THE 24-HOUR STARTUP

My 2017 startup failure went like this: I threw away all the code, quit my

girlfriend, and moved to a new country.

The more time invested, the higher the expectations. In the tough world of

entrepreneurship where expectations are rarely met, spending months on a product

is a recipe for burnout.

Every startup has a 24-hour version: Airbnb is a spreadsheet, and Instagram is a

Google Drive.

Find yours. Remove all non-critical features. Spend a week or two building.

Write a good headline and ship with a buy button.

Building a successful startup is a repetition of tiny failures.

Be comfortable being imperfect. Take action. Now is a good time to write some

code.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,500+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Showcase your startups and get more customers. Join 3,000+ solopreneurs!

4. ByeDispute

Don't let a dispute get you banned from Stripe.

5. ZenVoice

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/ditch-your-free-plan.

Stripe invoices without the fee

7 lessons from building 9 startups in 2023

I was lucky in 2023 — my income jumped from $1,500 in January, to $65,000 in

November.

But the real outcome was the knowledge I acquired.

Here are 7 lessons I wish I knew when I started the solopreneur journey.

Estimated reading time: 2 min 36 sec

BUILDING IN PUBLIC UPDATE

My logo maker LogoFast

https://logofa.st/

got the full awards from Product Hunt 🤩

Less time designing, more time shipping!

1. DON’T MARRY YOUR IDEA

Out of the 20+ startups I launched, only 1 made good money and grew.

It’s the same pattern for most solopreneurs who made life-changing money.

When it’s time to focus on your startup, you’ll know.

2. DITCH FREE PLANS

Only 3% of users upgrade to paid plans

You need 10,000 users to make $3,000 ($10/mo subscription). That’s an insane

amount of work for a solopreneur.

“Grow first, monetize later” is for VC-backed startups.

3. SUBSCRIPTIONS HEADACHE IS REAL

I killed a startup by swapping one-time payments for recurring ones.

Monthly passive income is good for business owners only. Users are much more

reluctant to subscriptions.

Start with one-time payments. Add subscriptions if there’s a demand.

4. SWAP VITAMINS FOR PAINKILLERS

100,000 visitors on my nice-to-have product website made $6,000.

100,000 visitors on my must-have product website made $100,000.

Unless you have an audience, avoid note-taking apps or habit trackers. People

buy solutions to painful problems.

5. EMOTIONS SELL

Few care about a NextJS boilerplate. But many care about a shortcut to ship

startups faster and reach financial independence.

Rephrase your copy to trigger an emotional reaction.

6. FIRST IMPRESSIONS MATTER

In our digital world, it’s the headline of your website, the thumbnail of your

YouTube video, or the first sentence of your tweet.

That one sentence has more impact on your conversion rate than anything else.

7. FOOD + SLEEP + WORKOUT = PSYCHIATRIST

As a solopreneur, you’re wearing 10 hats (developer + copywriter + accountant…).

Burnout is around the corner.

* Eat healthy, avoid carbs, quit sugar and alcohol

* Exercise daily, even if it’s an easy 15-minute workout

* Make sleep your #1 priority. Sleep at the same time every day in a dark room

at 18°. Don’t drink coffee 10 hours before bed, don’t drink water 3 hours

before bed, dim lights 1 hour before bed.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,500+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Showcase your startups and get more customers. Join 3,000+ solopreneurs!

4. ByeDispute

Don't let a dispute get you banned from Stripe.

5. ZenVoice

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-write-a-landing-page-that-converts.

Stripe invoices without the fee

Build your micro SaaS in 24 hours

A guide for product-obsessed developers to build a minimum viable startup in days, not weeksThe hard truthEvery startup has a 24-hour version What’s enough for a minimal MVP?What you should ditch:

When I believed I was Mark Zuckerberg in 2017, I spent a year building a startup

that got 0 users.

20+ startups later and countless months spent on useless features, I can

confidently say this: We overthink startups.

Here’s how to launch in weeks, not months.

Estimated reading time: 3 min 48 sec

BUILDING IN PUBLIC UPDATE

Handling Stripe subscription events is a real headache… So I made it as easy as

a pie with ShipFast!

Add a react component and the boilerplate takes care of everything from creating

a checkout to providing or revoking access to your service.

Don’t spend weeks on your SaaS, it’s available now.

http://shipfa.st/

THE HARD TRUTH

Let’s say you’re getting started and just launched your startup on Product Hunt.

1,000 visitors. Pretty cool! 900 will read your headline, 500 will scroll past

the first section, 50 will sign up, and 5 will pay to use your app.

That is a 0.5% conversion rate, which is optimistic for a first startup.

Spending 3 days on a password recovery form wasn’t probably worth your time…

Most of your efforts have 0 financial outcome—that’s entrepreneurship. Spending

months on a startup that will get 5 users and $100 in revenue is a recipe for

burnout (I was there in 2021). Shipping minimal MVP in weeks is an alternative

for mental well-being and financial success.

EVERY STARTUP HAS A 24-HOUR VERSION

* Airbnb is a spreadsheet

* Instagram is a Google Drive

* McDonald’s is a pop-up store

I’m not saying you should launch a scrappy product in a day (the

product-obsessed developer inside of you will resist anyway, I am the same).

But there’s a version of your startup that can be published within 24 hours.

What does it look like?

Start from that baseline and only add the bare minimum to get your minimal MVP

in days.

WHAT’S ENOUGH FOR A MINIMAL MVP?

A headline, a buy button, and 1 feature.

Your headline is the most important. It’s like the thumbnail of a YouTube video:

people will decide to invest their precious time on your site based on that

sentence. I wrote about how to make memorable headlines

You can only validate an idea if people pay for it. A waitlist isn’t enough.

Your minimal MVP should have a buy button.

Finally, the feature should solve the most painful customer’s problem. If that

feature requires smaller features, it’s OK. But don’t overthink it.

WHAT YOU SHOULD DITCH:

* Anything that’s invisible to the customer: Code testing, git branches, new

frameworks

* Anything that doesn’t add direct value to the customer: Forgotten password,

dark mode, a professional logo

* Any secondary features.

Shipping startups fast isn’t about working 12 hours a day. It’s about removing

noise. Ship minimalist. Be comfortable being imperfect.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,500+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Showcase your startups and get more customers. Join 3,000+ solopreneurs!

4. ByeDispute

Don't let a dispute get you banned from Stripe.

5. ZenVoice

https://marclou.beehiiv.com/p/how-to-find-startup-ideas.

Stripe invoices without the fee

How to validate a startup idea?

Picking the right startup to be profitable is a skill. Here is my 3-step framework.1. Is it painful?2. Would you (really) use it?3. How long until launch?

Hey—it’s Marc,

In 2022, 25% of my startups made money.

In 2023, 71% of my startups made money.

The last issue was about finding ideas

This issue is about picking the right one.

Estimated reading time: 2 min 16 sec

1. IS IT PAINFUL?

I spent a year working full-time on Habits Garden (a gamified habit tracker).

10,000+ accounts and tons of happy users, but it makes less than $400/month.

In comparison, VirallyBot (a marketing tool for escape rooms) generates

$600/month and I haven’t touched it since 2019.

The difference?

* Habits Garden is a vitamin: It’s cool to track habits

* VirallyBot is a painkiller: Escape rooms need marketing

People are much more willing to pay for a product that solves their problems.

* Focus on painkillers to reach profitability faster

* Turn vitamins into painkillers by explaining why your product is a must-have:

Track your habits → Diet habit you won’t quit

2. WOULD YOU (REALLY) USE IT?

My wife is a Korean teacher. So I typed Korean workbooks in Google and

discovered people were searching for this. 3 weeks later, WorkbookPDF was born

(AI-generated language workbooks).

I launched and made a few bucks. But the product is stuck because I don’t use

it: I have no idea how to write the copy or what features to add.

Validating ideas (i.e. keyword research) is important. But it’s pale in

comparison to actually using the product yourself:

* In the worst case, you improved your life

* Chances are someone needs the product too

* You understand the frustration, your copy will be on point

3. HOW LONG UNTIL LAUNCH?

You’re a solopreneur with limited time, primarily if you work 9 to 5. If it

takes 6 months to build a startup, it’s not a good idea. It will actually take

12 months (overthinking and bugs) and you could burn out and quit.

Instead, think in weeks, and ditch ideas that take longer than a month. You can

also lower your time-to-market:

* Presell a product

* Ditch code testing & dark mode

* Break big ideas into 1-feature-only products

There is no perfect idea. The only way to know is to launch it. This framework

helps you increase the odds of success and get profitable faster.

Whenever you're ready, there are 5 ways I can help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 1,500+

developers.

2. LaunchViral

Grow your startup with viral launch videos.

3. IndiePage

Showcase your startups and get more customers. Join 3,000+ solopreneurs!

4. ByeDispute

Don't let a dispute get you banned from Stripe.

5. ZenVoice

Stripe invoices without the fee

Part 4 Product

Ditch your subscription

I killed 3 startups because of recurring paymentsThe Subscription Fatigue Era$10/month VS. $100One-time payments alternativeWhen subscriptions make sense

The most popular advice for entrepreneurs is to charge subscriptions. Passive

income and predictable revenue, yes sir!

This is terrible advice.

Here’s why recurring payments are killing your business.

SOLOPRENEUR UPDATE

I spent the last 3 months building a new SaaS… 🥁

Introducing DataFast

— the actionable analytics tool for founders who want to grow their startups

with data.

If you try it, I’d love your feedback!

THE SUBSCRIPTION FATIGUE ERA

I killed 3 startups because of recurring payments:

1. IndiePage

https://habitsgarden.com/

* ✅ It makes $4,000/month on autopilot ($45 for lifetime access).

* ❌ It made $0/month when I priced it at $15/year.

2. MakeLanding

https://makelanding.ai/

* ✅ It made $100/day when I launched ($19 per landing page generated).

* ❌ It made $0 with a $5/month subscription.

3. HabitsGarden

* ✅ 100% of users chose the $47 lifetime deal.

* ❌ Nobody buys the $5/month plan.

10x the monthly price, but 100% of the sales

Netflix, Spotify, wifi... I spend a few thousand dollars a year on these

services. When I see $19/month, it’s not just $19. It’s $228 a year, on top of

everything else.

Business owners love subscriptions. Customers hate them.

Here’s the invisible cost of charging recurring payments:

* Conversion rate drop: People are reluctant to commit to another subscription,

which triggers objections and hesitation.

* Fighting churn: People lose interest soon after signing up. Instead of a

steady income, you’re constantly replacing customers who cancel.

$10/MONTH VS. $100

Selling a $10/month monthly subscription is as hard as selling a $100 one-time

payment.

Let’s assume you built an excellent SaaS (10% churn = 10% of your customers

cancel at the end of the month).

Imagine you get 100 customers today:

* You’ll earn $7,176 with subscriptions, after 365 days.

* You earn $10,000 with one-time payments, right now.

Subscription doesn’t mean recurring revenue. If you’re working solo, in 99% of

cases you’re better off financially with one-time payments.

ONE-TIME PAYMENTS ALTERNATIVE

Sometimes, your business has recurring costs, and you can’t afford one-time

payments. I’m not talking about bandwidth (that’s negligible) but things like AI

credits or database costs.

Then try credits-based pricing:

* Let your customers pay upfront for what they’ll use. Generate 10 AI photos

for $5.

* Then, add a Good-Better-Best

https://hbr.org/2018/09/the-good-better-best-approach-to-pricing

package. 100 AI photos for $20 ($.2/photo looks cheap now)

This removes the subscription friction (which boosts your conversion rate) and

helps you avoid constantly fighting churn.

WHEN SUBSCRIPTIONS MAKE SENSE

* B2B: If you’re selling to businesses, subscriptions make sense because the

end goal of any business is to make money.

* Complex credits: When tracking credits is too complex or it’s hard to

quantify what your customers use.

Subscriptions serve a specific purpose. Recurring payment = Recurring value

according to my friend Dan

Just because competitors charge recurring payments doesn’t mean you should.

Remember, people are tired of subscriptions, and purchase behavior is changing.

Not charging a subscription can be a competitive edge.

Oh, and entrepreneurs flex on each other with MRR charts. It’s a status game,

don’t fall for it. In the end, the customer is king.

5 startups I built to help you:

1. ShipFast

Ship startups in days, not weeks with the NextJS boilerplate loved by 4,200+

developers.

2. DataFast

Grow your startup with actionable data.

3. IndiePage

Join 7,000+ solopreneurs and showcase your startups.

4. ByeDispute

Don’t get banned from Stripe for 1 chargeback.

5. ZenVoice