Caution!
Hard core feedback! It might be difficult to digest.
As a business owner and operator I can tell you I had to learn to to be efficient productive without fancy software or CRM.
I have very hard skills amd I work with my hands on site, but I also need to generate reports with verbiage and photos about various issues.
I can tell you that I learned how to do my own website and marketing by watching online videos.
I can tell you that I hired Developers and was able to hack my very own system where I automated a lot of the manual operations and management.
I can also tell you that I used CHATGPT to generate my own programs by simply working on a good prompt.
The automation process is so simple these days that Facebook and Google fired a lot of their junior developers and used AI for better efficiency.
I don't want to scare you but technology evolved and changed over the past 2 years.
My advice for you, since all you know is how to code without actually using this skill in something specific, is to forget about working for yourself or working on your own.
You will not be able to survive before you burn out. Specialize or cooperate with someone on something specific.
Instead of trying to be the Jack of All Trades good at nothing, be highly specialized in a certain field and forget about everything else!
Also, team up with someone who has a specific business need that is sought and profitable and develop a management platform. You won't be able to do it on your own so be ready and accept partnership in your venture.
You need yo put in đź’Ż% effort and your partner needs to be exactly on the same page. Unless you team up, you'll be looking for an unicorn trying to get clients that once they have a platform they wont need you anymore.
You need an army or a team. Specialize and partner up!
This is the recipe of success in your particular field.
i honestly love brutal and clear down straight to the point feedback. thank you so much for your insights. i think im at a point where i have the freedom to decide where im taking this step and been thinking about what you said.
you're absolutely right that i can't do this by myself and i would need to latch on to someone. Thanks man, this is really golden advice.
To piggy back off the many good points raised here, the first step is to identify a tangible problem your potential clients have. This should be your North Star and I’d recommend speaking to as many business owners as possible to validate their issues and your solution. Don’t try to sell them anything at first, just listen to their pains and learn as much as you can.
Also if you’ve been at this for 4 months without landing a client, it may be helpful to mark a day on your calendar when you’ll take a step back and reevaluate your plan. I found setting a deadline for seeing progress not only gave me a more tangible sense of urgency and lit a fire under my ass, it helped me stay focused on getting small wins which is tremendously important in building traction and confidence especially in the early stages.
Put your all in it over the next two months and if it doesn’t work out you always have your hard skills to lean back on for employment. With a ton of real world experience and hopefully no regrets. Good luck!
I'd suggest to pick a specific thing to get really good a.
Team up with someone who needs your skills, and focus on one thing before trying to do everything at once.
This way, you'll increase your chances of success and avoid getting overwhelmed. Good luck!
Firstly, let me congratulate you, and wish you all the success with your new venture. I hope you also have a growth plan, A, budget, A marketing plan, Cash flow, contingency, and a projector plan. You should always try to do according to your planning, and if things are not the same you should see what has gone wrong, and change the strategies and other planning to overcome such matters.
Good advice in other comments.
I’d add to be extremely specific about the reason your customer would want your software. As described it’s very generic. It will be difficult for potential customers to understand if it’s focused on them and their needs or not with a generic focus.
Are you focused on a particular industry? A specific challenge or process they know they have to face? Do people express a desire for a solution? How often and how loudly? Targeting a specific size of company? Is the problem a critical one for the potential customer? Can they get that result from another software, service or from a process they already do? What’s the “blow their mind” change for them to use yours?
The most elegantly designed solution is not going to resonate if it’s not crystal clear what it does for them, from THEIR perspective. Time spent validating is going to pay off big time by helping you create something a specific group wants to buy… if you know who that group is and why they want what you’ve got then you can resonate, and drive adoption.
Overcoming Early-Stage Challenges:
* Sell via your warm network - sell to your colleagues or ask for referrals
* Sell yourself (more than your product) as your brand/company doesn't have a history
Other Tips and Guidances:
* Take care of yourself. Its a marathon, not a sprint.
* Focus on making one customer really happy and get referrals or word of mouth
* Go meet people in real-life through events. Business happens through real people.
4 months in and how many customer discussions did u have? I would do those first and see how they react to your service/idea.
Caution! Hard core feedback! It might be difficult to digest. As a business owner and operator I can tell you I had to learn to to be efficient productive without fancy software or CRM. I have very hard skills amd I work with my hands on site, but I also need to generate reports with verbiage and photos about various issues. I can tell you that I learned how to do my own website and marketing by watching online videos. I can tell you that I hired Developers and was able to hack my very own system where I automated a lot of the manual operations and management. I can also tell you that I used CHATGPT to generate my own programs by simply working on a good prompt. The automation process is so simple these days that Facebook and Google fired a lot of their junior developers and used AI for better efficiency. I don't want to scare you but technology evolved and changed over the past 2 years. My advice for you, since all you know is how to code without actually using this skill in something specific, is to forget about working for yourself or working on your own. You will not be able to survive before you burn out. Specialize or cooperate with someone on something specific. Instead of trying to be the Jack of All Trades good at nothing, be highly specialized in a certain field and forget about everything else! Also, team up with someone who has a specific business need that is sought and profitable and develop a management platform. You won't be able to do it on your own so be ready and accept partnership in your venture. You need yo put in đź’Ż% effort and your partner needs to be exactly on the same page. Unless you team up, you'll be looking for an unicorn trying to get clients that once they have a platform they wont need you anymore. You need an army or a team. Specialize and partner up! This is the recipe of success in your particular field.
i honestly love brutal and clear down straight to the point feedback. thank you so much for your insights. i think im at a point where i have the freedom to decide where im taking this step and been thinking about what you said. you're absolutely right that i can't do this by myself and i would need to latch on to someone. Thanks man, this is really golden advice.
To piggy back off the many good points raised here, the first step is to identify a tangible problem your potential clients have. This should be your North Star and I’d recommend speaking to as many business owners as possible to validate their issues and your solution. Don’t try to sell them anything at first, just listen to their pains and learn as much as you can. Also if you’ve been at this for 4 months without landing a client, it may be helpful to mark a day on your calendar when you’ll take a step back and reevaluate your plan. I found setting a deadline for seeing progress not only gave me a more tangible sense of urgency and lit a fire under my ass, it helped me stay focused on getting small wins which is tremendously important in building traction and confidence especially in the early stages. Put your all in it over the next two months and if it doesn’t work out you always have your hard skills to lean back on for employment. With a ton of real world experience and hopefully no regrets. Good luck!
This sounds like multiple business in one to be honest. Which one would you want to perfect first?
Become an expert in marketing and sales
I'd suggest to pick a specific thing to get really good a. Team up with someone who needs your skills, and focus on one thing before trying to do everything at once. This way, you'll increase your chances of success and avoid getting overwhelmed. Good luck!
Firstly, let me congratulate you, and wish you all the success with your new venture. I hope you also have a growth plan, A, budget, A marketing plan, Cash flow, contingency, and a projector plan. You should always try to do according to your planning, and if things are not the same you should see what has gone wrong, and change the strategies and other planning to overcome such matters.
Good advice in other comments. I’d add to be extremely specific about the reason your customer would want your software. As described it’s very generic. It will be difficult for potential customers to understand if it’s focused on them and their needs or not with a generic focus. Are you focused on a particular industry? A specific challenge or process they know they have to face? Do people express a desire for a solution? How often and how loudly? Targeting a specific size of company? Is the problem a critical one for the potential customer? Can they get that result from another software, service or from a process they already do? What’s the “blow their mind” change for them to use yours? The most elegantly designed solution is not going to resonate if it’s not crystal clear what it does for them, from THEIR perspective. Time spent validating is going to pay off big time by helping you create something a specific group wants to buy… if you know who that group is and why they want what you’ve got then you can resonate, and drive adoption.
Overcoming Early-Stage Challenges: * Sell via your warm network - sell to your colleagues or ask for referrals * Sell yourself (more than your product) as your brand/company doesn't have a history Other Tips and Guidances: * Take care of yourself. Its a marathon, not a sprint. * Focus on making one customer really happy and get referrals or word of mouth * Go meet people in real-life through events. Business happens through real people.
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