Rob Walling

A market that can pay without a venture outcome. Boring is a feature. If it requires a land-grab, it is the wrong game.

1. 01Prefer businesses with existing budgets and slow fashions.
2. 02Check that SEO or email can reach them without a celebrity founder.
3. 03Talk to buyers about the job, not about 'SaaS'.
4. 04Walk away from markets that only work with paid blitzes.

Charge from day one. Scope for profit. The first version should be sellable by a human in an email.

1. 01Price as a business, not as a side project.
2. 02Keep the team small so the product can stay focused.
3. 03Build what you can support.
4. 04Write the help docs like they are marketing — they are.

StartupsForTheRestOfUs energy: tell the truth in public, collect a list, show up at the conference.

1. 01Publish the journey without fake traction.
2. 02Email capture on every essay and talk.
3. 03Find the three rooms where these buyers already gather.
4. 04Warm partnerships before you need them.

A competent email, a page that explains the job, and enough time. Not a fireworks show.

1. 01Launch to the list and the rooms, not to 'the internet'.
2. 02Offer a reason to start this week that is honest.
3. 03Staff support. Bootstrap customers talk, and they remember.
4. 04Skip channels that would attract non-buyers at volume.

Years. Search, email, reputation. Community (MicroConf) as a long channel. Acquisition is optional; profit is not.

1. 01Reinvest in the compounding pipes.
2. 02Be around long enough that trust becomes the moat.
3. 03Help peers — the scene sends deal flow.
4. 04Do not raise money to feel like you are growing.