HowTheyGotUsersHowTheyGotUsers

Deliver the Service By Hand Before Building the Software

Deliver the Service By Hand Before Building the Software is a first users & traction tactic for getting your first users: Instead of coding first, the founder ran a manual MVP, fulfilling the work personally like a freelancer, and landed a first customer at $800/mo writing their LinkedIn posts by hand.

It's a strong fit for Agencies / services and B2B SaaS teams, and works especially well for B2B SaaS, service-to-software plays. As a first users & traction play, plan for medium effort and expect results to show up quickly, all grounded in 1 linked primary source.

First users & tractionMedium effortFast

Why does first users & traction work for this?

Doing it by hand proves there's money in the problem with zero build risk and teaches you exactly what to automate.

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.

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Sources

Works for
Agencies / servicesB2B SaaS

Frequently asked

What kind of products does the "Deliver the Service By Hand Before Building the Software" tactic work for?
It is a good fit for Agencies / services and B2B SaaS — 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 "Deliver the Service By Hand Before Building the Software" tactic verified?
It is drawn from 1 primary source — a real founder write-up or interview, not generic advice. It is linked in the Sources section above so you can read the original account yourself.
How much effort is it and how fast are results?
It is medium effort, and results tend to be fast.
Where can I see the exact step-by-step?
The full step-by-step a founder ran, documented via Source — IndieHackers, is in the paid library.

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