$8k MRR within a year after pivoting to productized services
Moniet Sawhney learned to code at a bootcamp, worked for a handful of startups, and — once he had the chops for it — started building SaaS products. After a few attempts, he shifted his focus and tried his hand at productized services.
Less than a year later, Designpop is at $8k MRR.
Here's Moniet on how he did it. 👇
Going all in
I've always been surrounded by entrepreneurship. Many family members are industry leaders in India, and my father, after 20 years of corporate life, quit his job to start a resort and flip it for ~3x. So it's safe to say that I've always wanted to be my own boss, in one way or another.
When I started my career, I was a fresh bootcamp grad, and I knew I had a lot to prove. But after six years grinding for other startups, it felt like the right thing to go all in on my own business. I had already built and sold a small project, so I was somewhat assured I had some chops to work with.
At the end of 2023, the YC startup I was working for shut down. I took the opportunity to move to Southeast Asia and start building my business. I've always admired Southeast Asian culture, and moving there meant my runway would be a lot longer.
I'm currently working on Designpop, a design and development subscription service.
We're doing roughly $8k/mo, divided between subscriptions and one-off landing page work. We hit $1.5K our first month, then $3K in our 3rd month. It took the rest of the year to reach $8K.
Starting at a low price
We offer three packages:
MVP development with a 4-6 week timeline
Design/development subscription
Landing page design and development, including copywriting and SEO research
For pricing, we took a methodical approach and reverse-engineered what other micro-agencies did to get their initial customers. What we found was that they created buzz by creating cheap packages with high-quality work.
We knew it would be brutal, but we tried it in the hopes that it would create a network effect. We started with really low pricing — just $1k/mo for design work and $599 for landing pages. That made us $1.2k with two landing pages in the first month. And we managed to double that every two months.
Eight months in, with a few repeat customers, we grew our revenue simply by raising our prices. Once our customers were hooked on our service, providing high-quality and proactive output, it was an easy sell!
A JS-heavy stack
Our tech stack is pretty JavaScript heavy:
• Front-end: Next.js, React, React Router + Vite
• Backend: Hono.js with Node.js or Bun.js
• Database: We use Drizzle as our ORM
• Email: Mostly Resend, sometimes AWS SES
• Hosting: Cloudflare, Vercel, Hetzner, depending on project requirements
For future projects, we'll be moving to a full Bun.js stack. We find the DX to be phenomenal!
Growth via automated cold outreach
For Designpop, we did quite a bit of research to identify our target audience — and to find the online communities and keywords that could serve as channels.
Then, we created a custom bot to scrape opportunities for us. That would allow us to reach a certain quota of outreach. We figured that, as long as we got 2-3 calls per week, we could scale this to where we needed.
And it worked. This is how we got all of our users.
And I'll say this: Getting on calls gives me a great feeling of progress! It's one of the best parts of the business, compared to SaaS products.
If he did it again: Social media
With any services business, the biggest challenge is having a steady stream of customers. If I had to do it over again, I would probably focus on building an audience on socials like X, BlueSky, or LinkedIn. It takes time to crack the formula, but over a period of a year, it would have paid off.
I was initially skeptical about this approach because I wasn't sure if we'd attract an audience that would be interested in our services. But I think I was wrong. It can create a lasting network effect that can scale businesses fast.
The 3-step process of indie hacking
I think I can break down the indie hacking path into a few simple steps — mostly targeted to technical founders, as that's my perspective of indie hacking:
Build a lot of stuff. There's a lot to learn, and getting a product to be refined and competitive is hard. So I think it's important to build technical chops first. That way, you can work fast and build something that's actually good!
Be a "scene-ius": This is a mashup of the words 'scene' and 'genius'. It means that you should be observant and take every opportunity of milking new trends to gain momentum with a goal to kick off something long lasting. Advice that, I'll admit, I need to follow better as well!
Do your research: Don't build in your silo and expect people to care about your product. Find out where the customers are, how you can solve their problems, and most importantly, how you'll sell to them. The easiest way is to send a landing page that clearly shows what you have to offer. If you build interest like this and get early sign-ups, you'll launch to cheers, not crickets!
Get a cofounder
And one last thing: Get a cofounder!
It's been really great to have a cofounder on this journey. Until now, I've been working in my own silo, and it's been a refreshing experience to collaborate on building and scaling the product together.
Indie hacking is hard enough, and it's really nice to have someone to celebrate the wins with!
What's next?
We're fully focused on growing our revenue at the moment. And as I mentioned earlier, we think that social media might be a great way for us to achieve this. So, our goal for the next year would be to build an audience and grow our brand further.
You can follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn. Or learn more about Designpop at designpop.co.
Leave a Comment
Really thoughtful breakdown especially the transition from skills → services → repeatable revenue. A few things stand out clearly:
1. Starting cheap to build momentum was the right call but the real strategy was positioning, not pricing.
A lot of service founders underprice because they lack confidence; you underpriced to manufacture demand, social proof, and a referral loop, then moved upmarket once retention signaled value. That’s the correct sequence.
Most agencies raise prices before proof. You did it after repeat usage, which is why it worked.
2. Your stack choice makes sense for speed-first execution.
The JS-heavy stack aligns well with your service model quick landing pages, fast shipping, and a unified skill base across the team. Curious to see how moving fully to Bun impacts hosting strategy (Bun + edge compute + Drizzle could be a powerful combo).
3. Automated outbound is underrated in indie circles.
Technical founders often default to building inbound funnels too early. You did the opposite *fill pipeline first, build brand later.*
That’s more B2B reality than most want to admit.
It also reinforces something founders overlook:
> Service businesses don’t die from lack of talent; they die from lack of deal flow.
4. Agree completely on the social media regret.
Building audience in parallel with client work compounds long-term distribution. The “services → audience → product” flywheel is a powerful path when done over years, not months.
If you lean into this, share:
* case studies (screenshots + metrics)
* teardown threads
* transparent pricing stories
* stack breakdowns
Design + dev + actionable examples performs extremely well on X/LinkedIn right now.
5. Co-founder commentary is spot on.
A lot of indie founders misinterpret independence as isolation. Having a co-founder changes pace, accountability, and emotional stamina—especially when juggling multiple product lines and client pipelines.
### A question
Would love to hear more about one thing:
How do you keep repeat subscription work from becoming custom agency chaos?
Productized services scale only when scope discipline is tight. If you’ve nailed that operationally, that’s a playbook worth sharing.
Clearly define deliverables, limit customization, and use templates or frameworks for repeat work. Automate onboarding and client communication wherever possible—this keeps productized services scalable without slipping into full custom agency chaos.
well done!
the real lesson here is simple: SaaS is slow, but services give you cash, trust, and distribution fast.
you didn’t pivot down.... you pivoted to the path that actually validates in the real world. cheap starter offers, fast delivery, and consistent outreach… that’s what gets momentum.
solid breakdown.
🙌 🫶
This is such an inspiring journey! 🚀
Moniet’s story perfectly shows what happens when you combine technical skill, smart positioning, and relentless execution. Starting low-priced to build momentum, leveraging a JS-heavy stack for speed, and using automated cold outreach for consistent leads — all of it is super actionable for anyone building an agency or productized service.
I especially loved the honesty about what he’d do differently (social media is a long game, but worth it) and the reminder that indie hacking is easier with a cofounder.
Huge respect for turning Designpop into an $8k MRR business in under a year. 🔥
Lots to learn here!
Great write-up. What stands out is how consistent the execution was. Starting with low pricing, focusing on a stack they already knew well, and doing steady cold outreach is a simple plan, but it worked because they stuck with it.
Switching from SaaS ideas to a productized service also feels practical. Recurring service work can create stability much faster, and this story shows that clearly.
The notes on pricing, audience research, and improving through repetition are useful. The point about building an audience sooner is something many founders learn only after a few attempts.
Really liked this breakdown. Going from low-cost customer acquisition to actually figuring out where your customers live is such a solid progression. And hitting $8k MRR within a year after shifting to productized services just proves the path was working.
On the social media side, I think growing a network on social these days is way tougher than it used to be.
Love seeing this kind of transparent breakdown. What stands out is how methodical the approach was — low entry pricing, fast delivery, stacking repeat customers, then raising prices once trust was built. It’s a simple playbook, but most founders never execute it this consistently.
The automated cold outreach + clear targeting was also a smart move. Too many indie hackers build in isolation and wait for magic. This shows what steady, intentional action can actually do. Solid story and solid lessons.
Appreciate it! 🙏
Great story. Starting with low-priced packages, scaling via cold outreach, and raising prices later is such a smart, repeatable strategy. I am really inspired by your achievement of $8K MRR.
SaaS → Service.
The pattern repeats because most SaaS solves at the wrong layer.
Software alone can't close the gap between tool and outcome.
Services bridge that gap.
This wasn't a pivot. It was a correction.
Really inspiring to see how you pivoted and found product-market fit with productized services. The pricing strategy of starting low and gradually increasing as you proved value is smart - takes the risk out of the equation for early customers. Thanks for sharing the breakdown of your tech stack and growth tactics.
Moniet’s story is a great example of pivoting from ideas to validated execution. Key takeaways:
Start small, start cheap: Build momentum and social proof first, then raise prices.
Productized services scale faster than custom SaaS: Standardize offerings, use templates, and automate where possible.
Pipeline > perfection: Automated cold outreach fills the funnel before marketing or social traction.
Tech stack matters: A JS-heavy stack enabled fast delivery and consistent output.
Co-founder advantage: Collaboration improves execution, accountability, and morale.
Audience early: Social media presence could have accelerated growth even further.
The main lesson: combine speed, disciplined scope, and steady outreach to grow predictable revenue without overcomplicating operations.
good
$8k MRR in a year after pivoting! That's seriously impressive. Love the detail about starting with low pricing!
What's interesting is that I've heard people in my circles using their 10k X following to start a product business.
Really appreciate you sharing this — especially the part about switching from “trying to build the perfect SaaS” to something customers actually pull out their wallet for. I’ve seen this pattern in the smart-building world for years: incredibly strong technical work, but the business model or packaging is what really decides the outcome.
Your note about simplified scopes + clear boundaries hit home. In my other work, most headaches came from vague expectations and “we’ll see as we go.” When you productize properly, both sides finally breathe.
What surprised you the most after the pivot?
Was it the sales cycle, customer expectations, or the operational side?
Always great to learn from founders who’ve lived it, not just talked about it.
Congrats on the growing MRR! One challenge I’ve always wondered about in the context of productized services is how to effectively scale while managing client time expectations. As a freelancer, I often ran into situations where we’d agree on a timeline at the start of a project, but it would end up taking 2-3 times longer than expected—without necessarily translating into more revenue. How do you handle these kinds of situations? I’d love to hear your thoughts on managing time and client expectations.
Moniet Sawhney pivoted from building SaaS products to offering productized services with Designpop, a design and development subscription service. Starting small at $1.5K/month, he grew to $8K MRR within a year by combining subscriptions with one-off projects and using automated outreach
Impressive achievement! Reaching $8k MRR within a year after pivoting to productized services shows smart strategy, focus, and the power of scalable offerings.
Moniet’s pivot from SaaS to productized services is a great example of strategic execution. Starting with low-priced packages to build momentum, he created demand and social proof, then raised prices as value was proven. Using automated cold outreach helped fill the pipeline quickly, while a JS-heavy stack kept things fast and efficient.
The co-founder tip is key too—having a partner to collaborate with makes indie hacking less lonely and more effective. Moniet’s success shows how important it is to test, iterate, and adapt quickly. His story definitely inspires those considering a productized service model.
This is inspiring! The pivot from SaaS to productized services is something I've been thinking about. As someone with enterprise architecture background, I've seen how complex SaaS can get - especially around scaling, customer support, and continuous feature development.
The productized service model makes a lot of sense because you can leverage your technical skills while keeping the scope more controlled. Plus, being able to validate the market need faster is huge.
Curious about how Moniet handles the balance between standardization and customization in Designpop. At $8k MRR, are you finding clients want more bespoke work or are they happy with the productized offering?
Reaching $8k MRR within a year after pivoting to productized services shows smart strategy, execution, and adapting effectively to market needs.
Hitting $8k MRR within a year after pivoting to productized services shows smart strategy, execution, and the power of adapting to market needs.
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