Do things that don't scale
Your first customers won't come from an ad. They'll come because you went to them yourself.
Early on you dream of a system that brings in customers while you sleep. The reality is your first 10 or 50 customers come by hand, one at a time.
That's not a marketing failure. At this stage, that is the marketing.
What it looks like in practice
- Reach out yourself. A personal message on LinkedIn or WhatsApp beats a thousand ads.
- Onboard them yourself. Get on a call, fill in the details for them, and watch where they get stuck.
- Do the work manually behind the scenes. If the product promises a weekly report, write it by hand for the first month before you automate it.
- Visit them. A cup of coffee at the customer's office teaches you more than any survey.
- Reply fast. A founder who answers within minutes earns loyalty money can't buy.
Why it's worth the effort
At first the work feels heavy and slow, and you'll feel like you're wasting time. You're not. You learn what the customer actually wants, in detail the numbers will never show you. And a customer who felt you cared about them personally talks about you and brings others.
There will be a time to automate all of this. Just don't start automating before you know what you're automating.
This week: write down 10 potential customers you know by name, and talk to three of them before Thursday.
Idea from YC.
