How to launch a successful SaaS after 2 failures?
A brief lesson in resilience
As we explained in our previous article, our first two SaaS turned out to be failures:
We didn't manage to generate a single $ with these projects.
Worse: we couldn't even find any free users.
(Only 2 people tested our second SaaS...) 😔
So we're not going to fake it. It's very bad.
And it's nowhere near the results we'd hoped for.
So, the question now is...
What do we do about it? 👀
To be honest, we've taken a serious blow, but we still have the determination and desire to launch SaaS.
On the other hand, we can't ignore our previous failures.
We've obviously missed a few things.
So we can't foolishly repeat what we've already done.
As Einstein said:
« Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. »
So in this article, I'd like to share with you our latest progress on our latest SaaS, and explain what we've changed in our strategy and why, so as not to repeat the mistakes of the past.
1. Our new process for finding a business idea
For our first two SaaS, we identified problems we could solve, and figured that would be enough to launch something relevant.
Unfortunately, we soon realized that we were never the first to come up with the idea of solving X problem with Y solution.
So each time we had competitors, who were far better than us.
(Which meant that overnight success in this kind of market was almost impossible: on the contrary, you had to hold on and resist).
Then Guillaume Moubeche reminded us that, while some SaaS solutions succeed very quickly (in a matter of weeks), others usually take months to get off the ground.
So we decided that our next SaaS should address a sector we were passionate about, and on which we could work for months - even without results.
It's the best way to be resilient, and hold on to succeed.
(We realized this all the more because our first 2 SaaS were on LinkedIn, and after 2 months, we couldn't stand spending our days on this social network). 😅
So when we defined this criterion (passion), it was obvious to us that we had to do something about YouTube.
It's the platform where I spend the most time.
It's where I've done the most business with my brother Jules (as a reminder, I helped him launch a channel with over 125k subscribers).
Moreover, YouTube is also where my partner Geoffrey has the most expertise. (He himself created a graphic design channel with over 120k subscribers).
Unfortunately, no matter how hard we looked...
Well, we couldn't identify a painful problem that would allow us to say to ourselves, “Ah, this SaaS idea is brilliant!”
For example, at the beginning, we had thought of creating an analytics tool to enable creators to properly analyze their channel and their competitors, and thus make better content...
But after a bit of digging, we soon realized that most creators who subscribed to services like TubeBuddy weren't using it, and that in reality, YouTube Studio more often than not met their needs...
Whereas very few are prepared to pay for the options offered by services like 1of10 or ViewStats (MrBeast's SaaS).
(That's not to say that these businesses are bad ideas, just that competition is already high, for a cake that's not so big in our opinion).
So even though we're YouTube creators ourselves...
We didn't have that many ideas.
So we decided to do dozens of calls with YouTube creators, to learn more about them and identify problems we hadn't thought of.
And to tell the truth, here again...
It turned out to be a bit complicated, because we realized that the YouTube creators we were talking to all had different processes and objectives:
Some monetize their channels with sponsors...
Others sell training courses or their own products...
Still others don't monetize at all...
Some want to get as many views as possible.
Others prefer to attract only a qualified audience.
Some spend 2 months creating 1 video.
Others can produce a video in half a day.
Some do the editing or thumbnailing themselves.
Others delegate these tasks.
And so on. 😅
So, after 2 weeks of calling...
We realized we had to stop trying to come up with an idea that would appeal to all YouTube creators...
(The trap we were falling into).
To focus on a niche problem, and propose a concrete solution to solve it. (The basis of any SaaS… but sometimes, when you start thinking to avoid mistakes, you lose yourself…)
That's exactly what we started to put our finger on:
We realized that many YouTubers (especially the smaller ones, but who were ready to pay for tools that helped them to grow) were struggling to create their thumbnails.
More often than not, they have no graphic design skills.
So they end up using several tools (AI + Canva or Photoshop) and wasting an inordinate amount of time, just to make a thumbnail, which in the end they're not always happy with.
Because:
• Photoshop is too complicated.
• Canva isn't sophisticated enough.
So here's the idea we were looking for:
A thumbnail creation tool that would enable YouTube creators to design effective thumbnails in under 5 minutes – without graphic design skills!
2. Our new MVP development process
What we realized with the failure of our first two SaaS is that when you create an MVP based on your own intuitions...
You run the risk of creating an MVP that only interests you.
So, when we came up with the idea of creating a thumbnail creation tool, we decided to call a few YouTubers around us to understand their thumbnail creation process from A to Z, and determine with them what we could improve.
In short: we used the insights of our future users to create the MVP.
This way, Julien our CTO doesn't have to start working on an MVP that's going in the wrong direction - because of our bad intuitions.
Developing an MVP quickly (in 1 month) is precisely the way to avoid wasting time working for years on a product that won't interest anyone.
However, when you've already wasted 2 months developing 2 MVPs that haven't attracted any paying users...
You also want to avoid spending another month working for nothing.
By the way, there's a very simple way to see if a business idea works, even though the MVP doesn't exist:
Create a landing page for your SaaS, and see how many users sign up.
As for us, with our second SaaS (HeroTalk), if we'd just created the landing page (which can be done in 1 day), we'd have realized right away that our idea was of no interest to anyone.
(Because our problem wasn't “that our product didn't work”... it was that people weren't even signing up to try it out!)
In short, we could have known in 1 day what it took us 30 days to discover.
(But we've learned our lesson).
That's why this time, we started working on the landing page before releasing our MVP.
And that's why we're going to release the landing page very soon, even though the MVP isn't ready yet:
It's a good way of getting the word out about the project, and gauging interest in it.
(On the other hand, even if we don't generate much interest at first, this time we know we'll be working like crazy to get the project off the ground. That's why, contrary to what I said above, we're working on the MVP even though we don't yet have any subscribers on our landing page.)
To finish with the MVP, we needed a name for our SaaS.
It's a question many entrepreneurs struggle with.
But here, we did as we did for our first 2 SaaS, and our process is perfect in my opinion:
We chose a name in a matter of minutes.
We all brainstormed together on Slack very quickly.
At first, we opted for the name “Thumbly”, but it was already taken.
So we decided on “ThumbBear”.
Why ThumbBear?
Because it's got “Thumb” from “Thumbnail” in it, and “Bear” sounds good.
That's all there is to it.
It may not be the most sophisticated brand name, but we don't care. At this stage, a brand is itself an MVP.
Remember one thing: your early adopters aren't interested in your brand because its name is cool or its logo pretty.
They're interested because you solve their problem.
The brand is a scaling tool. Not to launch a business.
Don't waste time choosing the perfect name. Just pick a name very quickly, and you'll change it in a few weeks if necessary.
That's what most of the SaaS do when they get success.
3. Our new process to find users
I consider this to be our biggest failure with our first two SaaS:
We didn't get any users...
And so we had almost no feedback on our products.
In retrospect, I realized one thing: we were far too obsessed with selling.
We told ourselves that if we managed to sell at least a few subscriptions, it would validate our business ideas.
In theory, the principle isn't bad.
But in SaaS, I think it's no longer applicable.
Because before selling, people have to test the product. (No one subscribes to a SaaS without testing it first).
So if you can't find users who use your product for free...
It's going to be even harder to sell to them.
That's why a SaaS landing page shouldn't try to SELL...
But to encourage the user to sign up for a trial version of the product.
(After that, it's the trial version that should convert the user into a customer, by encouraging them to opt for a paid plan, in order to enjoy an even better experience).
So, for this SaaS, we thought that instead of waiting for users to find us...
We'd go and find them ourselves.
As a result, we're currently recruiting beta-testers from our network, who will be able to take advantage of the product for FREE.
In exchange, however, we ask them to share their feedback with us, and we implement the most requested updates.
Obviously, not everyone will be interested in this process, but it guarantees us feedback from real users...
And it allows our users to “build” the product of their dreams.
For the moment, our aim is to co-build the MVP privately, with 5-15 beta-testers.
This beta-test is officially private, meaning that we recruit these beta-testers individually, and carry out at least 1 on-boarding call with each of them - to measure the relevance of their profile, and their desire to get involved in the project.
To be honest, we don't yet know exactly how long this beta-test phase will last.
I'd like it to last no longer than 1 month, but we'll see.
The idea is that, at the end of this test phase, our beta users will have a version of MVP they can't live without when creating their thumbnails.
If we're able to get them used to using our product, it's proof that they're undeniably benefiting from it, and that it's time to scale up, by opening it up to more users!
So now let's get to work!
Let's build the best thumbnail creation tool ever! 😊
PS: If you'd like to test our MVP in sneak preview and have free access to all features, you can message me on LinkedIn. But I warn you that unlike the usual SaaS, you'll first have to go through a call with me, and then join our Telegram group with all our beta-testers, to share daily feedbacks with us).
A pleasure to read ! Very interesting to see your new process detailed like that, can't wait to see how it goes 💪
🔥 will read it later