SaaSify

[LeoistheSun]

Heres my journey to building a money-tree of my own.

***
I got into SaaS about 6 weeks ago. I've got a heavy IT background (no programming XP) so it's not difficult to get into.

I've been calling lots of businesses, approx 500 now and spoke with 27 people. The niche I've chosen isn't panning out like I'd thought. Not enough painful problems, or ones that can be fixed fairly easily.

Building a SaaS is no easy task. It's no wonder theirs no training material anywhere for it. That's a good thing! I wouldn't want thousands of people piling on like they did with Facebook Ad's and "own your own marketing company!"

The (n-E-c-s-t) ENTRY is quite frankly massive, so that's a good thing! Takes a lot of hustle, calling, talking, going in circles and frustrations to get anywhere- and I'm just getting started!

A little background on myself: I started a SaaS some months ago, that I thought was a good idea. The problem was, was that I didn't know who wanted it. So I decided to start over and find a need first.

So I'm calling... lots and lots of people.

Sidenote: I am in the pre-selling phase with a small program.

That's all for now.

 

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[LeoistheSun]

Slow going but going nonetheless.

I haven't set a concrete goal, so I am going to do that now.

Long-Term: 100 paying customers @ $50/mo.
Short-Term: Discover a problem that people NEED to be solved, that is present with 10% or more of the people I cold-call.

How do you discover those needs? By asking the right questions.

I've learned that you will only get those answers if you ask the right questions and dig deeper than what people tell you. Zone in on the actual problem. It's not always what the person says it is.

Example Questions:

• "Are you procrastinating doing anything at this moment?"
• "In the last week/month did you stay after work to work or work at home after work?"
• "Do you use MS Excel? What do you use it for?"

Questions like these help identify pain points for software or anything really. I had a conversation with a lady a week ago and the idea I got was for a book on how to persuade people to take care of their pet's health.

 

[LeoistheSun]

I figure I'd detail my exploits for the day over a cold beer.

Today was well, okay. Ups and downs galore. One minute your second-guessing yourself, another minute, you're having a meaningful conversation even though it's not really going nowhere.

Today, I pretty much decided not to call any more Social Workers. This was my niche, and I felt it would be empowering to help those who truly help other people. I set up RVM (Ringless Voicemail) to call some of the cell #'s that I had got and left them a message about what I was doing.

I got about 4-6 calls today from that- out of 60-ish #s. Not too bad I suppose. Most didn't really go anywhere since what you do varies so much as a Social Worker. I had one lady who helped Homeless Vets and another who helped disabled people. I don't remember the rest.

Rule No 1: Don't pick a niche that is so varied.
Rule No 2: Don't pick an idea that potentially has to deal with HIPAA. It will likely cost a fortune.
Rule No 3: Don't pick Govt. unless your okay with selling something that may take a lot of "approvals" from people. You won't be able to sell your SaaS through a Facebook Ad.

Indecision, Indecision... Who should I call now? Where should I go? Being persistent is the first step to being successful, but it may take time to validate that your idea or hunch was correct- and your persistence paid off. My hunch was Real-Estate Appraisal. Something I used to do awhile ago (all I remember was SPREADSHEETS!!) and BPO's.

So I called a couple people. Didn't get anywhere. Still, I called more.

Rule No 4: Finding a niche should not be like pulling teeth. People should be eager to speak with you.

I called another a man with a very deep voice answered. Immediately I thought I was going to get a "no not interested", but nope... he turned out to be very friendly and talked and talked and talked.

You never really know who you'll meet. I had a lady who thought I was a scammer- yet I asked for no personal details... hmm yeah... okay.

Peace.