I built a free FCA firm checker in 4 weeks — struggling with distribution (0 → 10 customers)

450 impressions/day after 4 weeks with zero marketing budget is actually a solid signal. That means your SEO instinct is right and Google is already picking up what you built.

The remote selling challenge is real but honestly less of a barrier than it feels. I sell B2B from the UK to companies all over the world and most of my early customers never met me. What worked: writing content that targets the exact problem your buyer is searching for. Things like "how to check if a firm is FCA regulated" or "FCA enforcement history lookup." Those are high-intent searches from people who already need what you built. No cold outreach required.

The other thing I'd try: find compliance consultants and fintech lawyers on LinkedIn. They're the ones doing FCA checks every week for their clients. A free tool that makes their workflow faster turns them into evangelists. One post tagging a few of them with a case study showing how many violations you found in a well-known firm could get you your first 10 users.

You've built something useful in a space where the default experience (the FCA register itself) is painful. That's the whole game. Keep going.

The "distribution is harder than building" realization is one of the most common (and painful) lessons in SaaS. You've got a solid product with real utility — the challenge now is entirely about putting it in front of the right people at the right moment.

A few things that have worked for us selling a niche SaaS tool remotely: First, SEO content targeting the exact queries your users already search. You're already getting 450 impressions/day — that's a great sign. Double down on long-tail content like "how to check if a firm is FCA regulated" or "FCA enforcement history lookup." Those people are already looking for what you built. Second, instead of cold outreach to compliance professionals directly, try reaching the adjacent community — compliance consultants, fintech founders, legal bloggers. One mention from someone they already trust is worth 100 cold DMs. Third, consider a "powered by FirmTracer" embed or widget that compliance firms could put on their own sites. That turns every user into a distribution channel.

The remote selling challenge is real but actually less of a barrier than it feels. We're building an AI ad creative SaaS and most of our early users came from people we never spoke to — they found us through content, tried the free tier, and converted. For niche B2B tools, trust comes from the product experience more than the sales call. Your 450 daily impressions are the seed — the question is how to turn those into signups with a really compelling free experience and clear CTAs.