Zach Swinehart
TLDR: Designer and developer looking to partner with someone who has a track record with validating and marketing SaaS.
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Longer version:
I'm a designer+developer with an [unpolished] eye for marketing, who's committed to creating really kick-ass products that people love to use.
I've spent many years working in php and the last few years honing my chops in modern js dev stacks, leveraging React Native & Redux primarily.
Recent experience: I've launched a web-based SaaS in laravel, and a couple mobile apps in React Native, a React app for the Overwolf gaming overlay platform, and am currently working on an MVP for a Fintech web app for a client.
That SaaS project (pulseleagues.com) was my first foray into launching a product with co-founders, and it was a big learning experience for me in the "validate early" side of things. The product is an online platform for facilitating in-person table tennis leagues, and I had considered the idea validated since they already had a league going before we met -- just using an excel spreadsheet and a whatsapp group -- but in the end, my co-founders struggled to be able to viably scale it, and we've only ever had a couple leagues using it at a time. The project was both immensely joyful (when crafting such a cool product) and a bit heartbreaking (when that product never really saw the light of day).
The bulk of my php background lies in conversion-oriented Wordpress projects for clients, and while I don't consider myself a particularly talented outbound marketer, I am quite skilled with positioning, copy, and designing + building pages that convert, and am eager to meet a co-founder who aligns with my values for how I approach business.
Where I struggle when trying to be a solo founder is in finding an audience that I really resonate with for the long-term that I am committed to serving. Many of my interests evolve over time, and I find myself mired in trying to pick an audience to commit to. Additionally, if I had things my way, I would get to spend all my time getting to work on creating the best product possible, not on the marketing.
So in an ideal world, I'd love to connect with a co-founder who already has an audience they're established in, as well as an email list, who thrives on the marketing and relationship-building side of things, and just needs a partner who's committed to creating something awesome. Ideally a potential partner for me would have a track record with validating ideas and selling MVP SaaS that later scales.
Feel free to reach out if you think we might be a good fit; I'm currently looking for my next big project to sink my teeth into.
~Zach