HowTheyGotUsersHowTheyGotUsers

Build the Audience Before You Build the Product

Build the Audience Before You Build the Product is a social & short-form tactic for getting your first users: Treat a personal X following as a distribution asset you compound over months and years, so that every future launch starts with built-in demand instead of a cold start.

It's a strong fit for B2B SaaS and Dev tools / technical teams, and works especially well for indie hackers, solo founders, dev tools, B2B SaaS. As a social & short-form play, plan for high effort and expect results to build gradually over time, all grounded in 4 linked primary sources.

Social & short-formHigh effortSlow

Why does social & short-form work for this?

An owned audience collapses the hardest part of any launch — getting the first hundred people to notice and care — into a single post to people who already trust you.

The exact steps (5)

The full step-by-step this founder ran, what they posted, where, and in what order, plus the watch-outs, is part of the library.

Unlock the steps · $29 oncePlus all 3,000+ tactics and the new ones we add weekly.

Sources

Works for
B2B SaaSDev tools / technical

Frequently asked

What kind of products does the "Build the Audience Before You Build the Product" tactic work for?
It is a good fit for B2B SaaS and Dev tools / technical — pick it when your product looks like one of those, since the play is shaped around how those users find new tools.
How is the "Build the Audience Before You Build the Product" tactic verified?
It is drawn from 4 primary sources — real founder write-ups and interviews, not generic advice. They are linked in the Sources section above so you can read the original accounts yourself.
How much effort is it and how fast are results?
It is high effort, and results tend to be slow.
Where can I see the exact step-by-step?
The full step-by-step a founder ran, documented via The 10-Year Distribution Strategy and $10K/Month SaaS (30 Failures), is in the paid library.

Related tactics

Social & short-formLow effort· Fast

Cross-Post the Giveaway on LinkedIn and IndieHackers

The same free-course offer was posted on both LinkedIn and IndieHackers; LinkedIn pulled 6,440 feed views versus 489 on IH, and together they produced 120+ leads.

Read the steps →
Social & short-formLow effort· Medium

Build in Public on X With Frequent Small Updates

Over two weeks he posted 10-15 build-in-public updates on X, sharing screenshots, small wins, and even the mundane progress.

Read the steps →
Social & short-formMedium effort· Slow

Grow a Pre-Launch Waitlist by Building in Public

He built a 200+ person waitlist mostly by sharing ongoing development updates on Twitter/X and LinkedIn as he built the product.

Read the steps →
Social & short-formLow effort· Fast

Engineer the X Algorithm for Reach

Structuring each post and the first 90 minutes after it to maximize early engagement velocity, which is the strongest signal the feed uses to decide how far to push you.

Read the steps →
Social & short-formMedium effort· Slow

Warm Up Your Twitter Niche for 3-4 Weeks Before Launching

Spend the month before launch genuinely engaging with both fellow makers and likely customers via relevant hashtags so relationships and trust are in place on launch day.

Read the steps →
Social & short-formMedium effort· Fast

The Comment-to-Get Lead Magnet

Promote a freebie by asking readers to comment a keyword, then DM each commenter the link, turning a lead-magnet post into an engagement and email-capture engine at once.

Read the steps →

Get all 3,000+ tactics in one place

Filter by your product and channel, follow the exact steps, and get the new tactics we add every week. One payment, yours for good.

Unlock for $29 onceBrowse by channel