From Zero to Visibility: Pro tips on marketing your startup to get first 100 customers!

Hey fellow Indie Hackers! 

You did it. You built something from nothing. Truly. Deeply. Respect.

But now? Crickets. No customers. No buzz. Just you, your product, and a whole lot of silence.

Welcome to the real startup challenge: Getting Noticed.

Building wasn't the hard part. Marketing is where the real work begins. This isn't about perfect strategies—it's about persistent, scrappy action to get your product reach your first customers. Marketing might not be your forte, but it’s essential for getting your product in front of the right audience. The good news? You don’t need a massive budget or a fancy team to get started.

Here’s a simple, actionable guide to help you improve your marketing efforts, grow your product and get those first 100 customers.

Hire a SEO/Marketer 

If your budget allows, hiring an SEO expert or marketing professional early on can give you a significant advantage. They can help you set up a Go-To-Market (GTM) strategy from day one, ensuring your product is visible and competitive even before launch. However, if you’re bootstrapping, there are plenty of ways to handle SEO and marketing yourself. Here’s how to approach it:

1. Where to Find SEO Experts:

   • Fiverr: Affordable freelancers for one-time tasks like keyword research or backlink building. Find SEO experts on Fiverr.

   • Upwork: Great for hiring full-time or part-time SEO professionals. Find SEO experts on Upwork.

   • LinkedIn: Search for experienced SEO/marketing professionals. For example, I’ve worked with Vishek, who is excellent at SEO and GTM strategies.

   • Toptal: If you’re looking for top-tier talent, Toptal connects you with vetted experts. Find SEO experts on Toptal.

2. What to Look For:

   • Experience with startups or indie projects.

   • A portfolio of past work (e.g., improved rankings, traffic growth).

   • Knowledge of your niche or industry.

3. Budget-Friendly Tip: Start with a small project (e.g., keyword research or technical SEO audit) to test their skills before committing to a long-term contract.

If hiring isn’t an option, you can handle SEO yourself. Here are some steps you can take yourself

Start with Keyword Research

Before you write a single line of code or create a landing page, invest time in keyword research. This will help you understand what your potential customers are searching for and how to position your product.

• Use free/affordable tools: Tools like Ubersuggest (free) or Keywords Everywhere can help you find relevant keywords.

• Analyze competitors: Look at what keywords your competitors are targeting. Tools like Ahrefs or Semrush (paid) can help with this.

• Focus on long-tail keywords: These are less competitive and often have higher intent. For example, instead of “project management tool,” target “best project management tool for small teams.”

Nail Your Product Messaging

Your website and marketing materials should clearly communicate what your product does and why it matters. Keep it simple and customer-focused.

• Write a clear value proposition: In one sentence, explain how your product solves a specific problem. For example: “A simple project management tool for indie hackers who juggle multiple projects.”

• Use customer language: Avoid jargon. Speak like your customers do.

• Create persona-based pages: If your product serves different types of users (e.g., freelancers vs. small teams), create separate pages tailored to each group.

Boost Visibility with Product Directories

One of the easiest ways to get backlinks and improve your product’s visibility is by listing it on directories. These platforms can give your product an initial boost, drive traffic, and help you rank better on search engines. Plus, many of them are free or low-cost, making them perfect for indie hackers. There are several directories you can post to such as Product hunt, Capterra, SaasHub etc. 

Here is list of more than 500 directories: 

1. Comprehensive Directory List #1
   A curated list of directories across various niches.

2. Comprehensive Directory List #2
   Another great resource with a wide range of directories.

3. Comprehensive Directory List #3
   A detailed spreadsheet with directories for startups and indie products.

Backlinks

Backlinks are crucial for SEO—more high-quality backlinks mean higher domain authority and better rankings. Here’s how to get them:

1. Create Link-Worthy Content: Publish helpful guides, tools, or original research that others want to link to.

2. Guest Posting: Write for blogs in your niche and include a backlink to your site. Find opportunities with:

   • Google: Search [your niche] + "write for us"

   • Platforms: HARO, JournoRequests

Technical On-Page SEO: The Essentials

Technical SEO ensures your website is optimized for search engines. Here’s a simple checklist to follow:

1. Header Tags

   1. Use only one <h1> tag per page, and include your target keyword in it. This helps search engines understand the main topic of your page.

   2. Use <h2>, <h3>, and so on for subheadings. Keep them sequential (H1 → H2 → H3) to structure your content logically. Learn more about heading tags here.

2. Title and Meta Tags

   1. Title Tag: Keep it under 55 characters and include your primary keyword. This is what appears in search results.

   2. Meta Description: Write a compelling summary under 160 characters to encourage clicks. Use tools like SERPSim to preview how your title and meta description will look.

3. Open Graph Meta Data

   1. Add Open Graph tags (e.g., og:title, og:description, og:image) to control how your content appears when shared on social media. Use Open Graph Checker to test your tags.

4. Image Alt Tags

   1. Add descriptive alt text to all images. This helps search engines understand your images and improves accessibility. Use tools like Screaming Frog to audit missing alt tags.

5. Schema Markup

   1. Add schema markup (structured data) to help search engines understand your content better. Use Google’s Schema Markup Generator to create and test your schema.

6. Sitemap

   1. Create and submit a sitemap to Google Search Console. This helps search engines crawl and index your site faster. Use tools like XML Sitemap Generator to create one.

7. Robots.txt

   1. Use the robots.txt file to block search engines from crawling unnecessary pages (e.g., admin pages). This saves your crawl budget. Learn how to set it up here.

8. Image Caching

   1. Optimize and cache images for faster loading. Use tools like TinyPNG to compress images and WP Rocket (for WordPress) to enable caching.

9. Website Speed

   1. Google prioritizes fast-loading websites. Use PageSpeed Insights to analyze your site and fix issues. Aim for a score in the green range (90+).

10. Server-Side Rendering (SSR)

    1. Use frameworks like Next.js or Remix for SSR, especially for external pages. This ensures your meta tags are properly loaded for search engine crawlers. Learn more about SSR here.

11. Canonical Tags

    1. Add canonical tags to avoid duplicate content issues. This tells search engines which version of a page is the “main” one. Use Canonical URL Checker to verify your tags.

12. Fix Broken Links

    1. Broken links hurt user experience and SEO. Use tools like Dead Link Checker or Screaming Frog to find and fix broken links.

13. Mobile-Friendliness

    1. Ensure your website is mobile-friendly, as Google uses mobile-first indexing. Test your site using Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test.

    2. Use responsive design frameworks like Bootstrap or Tailwind CSS to make your site adapt to all screen sizes.

14. Optimize URL Structure

    1. Use short, descriptive URLs that include your target keyword. For examples

       1. Bad: yourwebsite.com/p=123

       2. Good: yourwebsite.com/seo-tips-for-indie-hackers

       3. Avoid special characters, uppercase letters, or unnecessary parameters.

15. Internal Linking

    1. Link to other relevant pages on your site using keyword-rich anchor text. This helps search engines understand your site structure and improves user navigation.

       Example: If you have a blog post about “SEO Tips,” link to your “Keyword Research Guide” using the anchor text “keyword research.”

16. Optimize for Core Web Vitals

    1. Google’s Core Web Vitals (Loading, Interactivity, Visual Stability) are key ranking factors. Improve them by:

       1. Reducing Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): Optimize images and use a CDN.

       2. Improving First Input Delay (FID): Minimize JavaScript execution time.

       3. Reducing Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): Specify image dimensions and avoid dynamic content shifts.

       4. Use Google’s Core Web Vitals Report to track performance.

17. Breadcrumbs

    1. Add breadcrumb navigation to your site. This helps users and search engines understand your site hierarchy. For example:

       1. Home > Blog > SEO Tips

       2. Use Breadcrumb Schema Generator to implement structured data for breadcrumbs.

Referral Programs

Turn customers into brand ambassadors by rewarding them for referrals. Use referral marketing software like Referral Rocket to set up a referral program quickly.

Affiliate Marketing

Leverage affiliates to promote your product for a commission. Use affiliate marketing platforms like Referral Rocket to manage your affiliate program.

Follow this simple checklist to launch your affiliate program.

Sales Strategy

1. Build your sales / lead generation strategy early. Reach out to 10 potential customers daily. Use tools like ZoomInfo or Apollo.io to find contact details.

2. Join communities where your customers hang out (e.g., Reddit, LinkedIn groups, or niche forums).

Social Proof

1. Collect testimonials and case studies from happy customers.

2. Record product demos or customer interviews and share them on YouTube.

3. Publish positive feedback on your website and social media.

Content Marketing

1. Publish 4+ detailed blogs (2,000+ words) weekly. Use tools like Surfer SEO or RankMath to optimize for SEO.

2. Hire freelance writers on Upwork or Fiverr.

YouTube Videos

1. Create tutorials, demos, interviews and customer testimonials for YouTube.

2. Partner with influencers to showcase your product. Use platforms like FameBit to find creators.

LinkedIn

1. Post regularly about your industry, product, and insights. Use Scrapin to track mentions of your brand or competitors and immediately be part of the conversation.

2. Build a community by engaging with posts and sharing valuable content.

X (Twitter)

1. Share your progress, challenges, and wins on X. Engage with other founders and your target audience.

2. Use tools like Hypefury to schedule and automate posts.

Reddit

1. Join relevant subreddits (e.g., r/SaaS, r/Entrepreneur). Use F5Bot to get alerts for keywords or mentions of your product.

2. Provide value by answering questions and sharing insights.

Discord

1. Join Discord communities related to your niche. Engage in conversations and share your expertise. Example: Indie Hackers Discord.

Blogs & Newsletters

1. Publish long-form, keyword-rich blogs consistently. Use AI tools like Jasper or Writesonic to speed up content creation.

2. Build an email list and send regular newsletters using Substack or Beehiiv.

Launch Announcements

1. Use this Indie Hackers guide to list your product on 100+ platforms.

2. Announce launches on Product Hunt, Reddit, and social media.

I help B2B companies scale. I am building Referral Rocket - referral and affiliate software for SaaS companies. I would also appreciate an upvote on our product - https://www.producthunt.com/posts/referral-rocket-2?utm_source=other&utm_medium=social