I got tired of complicated tools.
Not tired in a dramatic way. Just the quiet, everyday
frustration of opening yet another BI platform, staring
at a 47-step onboarding flow, and thinking — I just want
to see my data in a chart. Why is this so hard?
So I spent the last few months building something simpler.
A dashboard tool for small business owners. No complicated
setup. No data sent to servers. No cloud. Everything runs
in your browser — your data stays on your computer, always.
I called it CarpKO.
It's not trying to compete with Power BI or Tableau. It's
built for people who have a spreadsheet and want to
understand it better — without a three-day setup process.
You can upload a CSV, connect Salesforce, build charts,
create KPIs, model your data, filter it in real time —
and none of it ever leaves your machine.
In a world where every tool wants to become your data's
new home, I wanted to build something that simply refused
to play that game.
Building the product was the fun part.
I work in analytics by day. I built this solo,
evenings and weekends, because I kept watching
business owners suffer through spreadsheets with no
simple way out.
The product works. People who try it get it immediately.
But like most of you know — building something is only
half the journey. Getting it in front of the right people
is a completely different skill.
For those of you who've been here before — how did you
approach awareness in the early days when you had no
existing audience? What actually worked and what was
just noise?
carpko.com — happy to hear thoughts on the product too.
Skip broad channels early. Go find one Facebook group where small business owners complain about Excel or their accountant. Don't post about your tool, just answer questions genuinely for a week..
Then when the moment is right, drop it naturally. Those early users will do more for you than any launch post..
The 47-step onboarding frustration you described, screenshot that feeling and post it in those groups. No pitch. Just the relatable pain. People will ask what you built..
The Facebook group idea genuinely hadn't crossed my mind. Going to try it this week. Thank you
The other thing worth trying: find 5-10 small business owners in your network and do a 20-minute screen share with them. Watch where they get confused, what they ignore, what makes them say "oh that's useful." That feedback will tell you which feature to lead with in your messaging — and those people often become your first word-of-mouth if the product clicks for them.
This is probably the most honest feedback I’ve gotten so far. I’ve been avoiding this because I don’t have a big network, but you’re right — even 3-4 people watching me would tell me more than any analytics tool. If anyone reading this runs a small business and wants a free 20-minute session, drop a comment — happy to walk you through it in exchange for honest feedback!