The first 1,000 users: how Saudi startups got started
Your first thousand users don't come from an ad campaign. They come from a community you know, an existing habit, and manual effort that doesn't scale. Patterns from how companies in our directory began.
When you launch, the first question isn't "how do I reach a million?" It's "who are the first hundred? And then the first thousand?" At this stage, most of what works doesn't scale: personal messages, visits, WhatsApp groups, manual work. That's normal.
Look back at how the companies in our directory began, and you see patterns repeat. Most started with one clear channel, not ten at once.
1. Start with your own community
Unifonic started in 2006 as a bulk messaging site called Risalaty, because Ahmed Hamdan, a student at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, needed to message all the students at once. The problem was his own, and the first users were around him.
When you solve a problem you live, you know where the people who have it are: at the same university, the same company, the same industry. Start there.
If you're coming from a tech company: your former colleagues and the sector you know are the easiest first customers. You know the problem, and they know you.
2. Sell on an existing platform before building your own
Nice One started in 2013 when Abdulrahman Al Olayan imported a beauty product from the US, and his brother Omar Al Olayan sold it on Instagram. Then they opened a small shop in Buraidah, and the app and website came in 2017.
Instagram, WhatsApp, Snapchat, exhibitions: all places where customers already are today. Test demand there before you spend on an app.
3. Ride an existing habit
People don't like changing behavior. It's easier to improve something they already do.
- Tamara took its idea from the grocery ledger that lets a customer pay at the end of the month. A habit everyone knows.
- Tabby launched in February 2020 as an alternative to cash on delivery. Shoppers were used to paying later, so it gave them the same comfort in a better form.
- Nana started with staff shopping for customers at partner stores like Panda and Carrefour. It didn't need to convince people to try a new store, just delivery from stores they knew.
4. Start in one city
HungerStation launched from Dammam with the idea of one order from several restaurants at once. One city lets you focus marketing, get operations right, and learn whether the idea works before repeating a mistake in ten cities.
5. Remove the first barrier
Noon started with paid tutoring by subscription, and students didn't subscribe. Once it went free with paid services, it reached 100,000 students in the fall 2014 term. Sometimes what blocks the first user isn't the product but the price, the signup, or one extra step. Find it and remove it.
6. A slow start is normal
Work on Qoyod began in early 2014, and by June 2017 it had 700 registered users. Today more than 35,000 businesses use it (October 2026). B2B products especially start slowly, because every customer needs trust and time.
On the other end, barq said it reached one million users within 21 days of launch, according to the company. Its founder Ahmed Alenazi was the former CEO of stc pay. That's a rare case; don't measure yourself against it.
A practical plan for the first thousand
| Stage | Goal | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| First 10 | Understand the problem | Talk to them one by one, and help them manually |
| First 100 | Prove there's demand | One channel: a community, a platform, or direct sales |
| First 1,000 | Find the channel that repeats | Track where each user came from, and double down on the best |
If your product is B2B
Same logic, but smaller numbers and more effort. Your first ten customers usually come from your network: a former manager, a colleague who moved to another company, a supplier you dealt with. Ask them for a trial at a real price, even if discounted, because a paying customer gives you more honest information. And see our piece on selling to large organizations.
Common mistakes
- The big launch: a launch party without users who come back doesn't help.
- Paid ads too early: you buy users before knowing whether they'll stay.
- Too many channels: you won't know what worked.
- Neglecting the first hundred: they're your source of referrals and of understanding your product. Look after them personally.
You win your first thousand users one by one, and how you win them teaches you how to win the ones after.
The idea is from Lenny's Newsletter: How the biggest consumer apps got their first 1,000 users.
