Greetings From Miami!
Didn't hit my self-imposed deadline to launch my first new microsaas, but that's ok.
Well, I tried to get my new product shipped by Monday, but it didn’t quite pan out. I made some good progress, but ultimately I realized I’m a little rustier with things than I realized.
But I did make some good progress. I’m starting with a simple Django app for the backend, and a react app for the frontend. I was able to get the user login flows working, an API endpoint for the main functionality working, and a simple UI put together that can pull in the data from the backend.
One of the things I realized: newer Javascript frameworks like NextJS and BlitzJS spoiled me a bit. I was able to ignore certain aspects because the framework handled all of them for me. With Blitz, this primarily was around login flows, not having to worry about the frontend/backend communication layer at all, and the tooling configuration.
So one of the things I focused on was keeping things as simple as possible and building things up from the most basic structures I could.
And honestly, it was refreshing. For the first time in a long time, I was able to explore building from a very low pressure/high fun standpoint. I was exploring and tinkering, not worrying about solving big problems or what the revenue would look like.
So I was able to focus in on a specific part of the build. I started with the API endpoint that I could use to perform the main functionality of the SaaS. Then I spent a bit of time working out the login flows that I could add. That led me to work on a basic display of the data.
But ultimately, I ran out of time, because this week is the company offsite for Copy.ai! So I’m currently down in Miami, getting to know the team better, and building some stronger relationships. And spending some time in the pool, just resting. I’ve done a little bit of work on things, but mostly just relaxing, enjoying the company, having great conversations, and having fun!
And it’s been fantastic. I love the team we are putting together and it’s really cool to get to see firsthand the early growth stages of a startup, particularly a SaaS product. Our team has really started to grow over the past month and I can’t believe how far the company has come in the 6 short months I’ve been here.
I’ve had some incredible discussions around the future of software, the internet, and all sorts of other topics that pop up. These discussions have really cemented a few things in mind, especially related to SaaS products.
The main thing that I am more sure about than ever: SaaS products are codified expertise.
I’ve talked before about viewing SaaS products as superpowers. I can purchase a product that can give me the ability of an expert with a much lower learning curve. With Copy.ai, that ability is writing copy. And to get the product to where we want it to go, the team has to understand copywriting from many different angles. And this means that there are constant discussions happening around best practices, what the best copywriters do, what people are struggling with, etc.
If you want to be a founder of a SaaS company, the first thing you should do is identify the experts in a given process. Or better yet, be an expert in a given process. From there, the goal should be to help your user develop the abilities you have in a fraction of the time and with a fraction of the energy it took you (or the external expert) to get to that point.
This will give you the knowledge you need to start planning out your SaaS offering. There are so many opportunities to improve current processes everywhere. That’s the second insight that I’ve really had solidified. People are all over the place, trying to accomplish things and learning as much as possible. But the internet is a very noisy place. As a SaaS founder, if you can filter out the noise of a process and give people exactly the tool the user needs to accomplish some goal, that’s incredibly valuable. You save them the time, energy, and frustration of having to research all sorts of things from all sorts of sources, the trial and error involved in learning, and help them accomplish the thing they wanted to do.
And that’s an incredibly powerful position to be in.
I’ll send out the deep dive into my first microsaas sometime in the next week or so to paid subscribers, once I get it closer to launch. But I wanted to share some thoughts around what makes SaaS products so powerful. There are so many opportunities to leverage your knowledge and your experience. I also picked up the domain for the following product as well. I’ve been prioritizing these ideas based on what I want to exist, so that makes my life a lot easier. As I get some bits and pieces a bit more developed, it will become easier to launch new products. Time is coming to just start shipping!