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⭐️ Why the indie maker playbook is dead (or how I learned to spend money on ads)
It had a good run but like all playbooks it eventually stopped working.
jakobgreenfeld.com
@jakobgreenfeld shared this himself just a couple of months back, I'm not sure why it's getting re-listed on the IHer homepage like it's new. @csallen does the 'link posts' option not check for duplicate content like HN et al?
It's a good article anyway, but there's a reason other platforms try to stop duplicate content resurfacing in this way - it incentivises people to keep reposting the same thing over and over again (either on their account, or a duplicate) hoping to get another go on the merry-go-round. I appreciate it's not Jakob doing it in this instance :)
I think its great advice but also a false dichotomy.
You can and should spend on ads once you have:
The reason indie-hackers should not spend much on ads at the beginning is because they don't have yet and clear idea of who is their customer.
They also don't have the luxury of blowing $500 every month on failed ad campaigns.
So if you have some traction and a few paying users that you know are the users you want to have, then go ahead and start an ad campaign but if you are just finding your feet, then its probably not the best idea.
How do you know if there are customers who really have the problem without validating it? It's less about spending $500 on ads but more about alternative ways to validate your idea as fast as possible, without having to build an audience for each niche and grinding for months, just to realize your product doesn't solve a real pain point.
As a marketing and ad guy - yes - this truth. Founders who don't spend money on Ads will fail. The reason advertising is a trillion-dollar business is because it works. Founders, no matter how bootstrapped they are, must realize this obvious truth. Those who don't are not serious about growth.
the key is just don't have any cult-like opinion about anything. just figure out what works & go do it.
😂
So glad someone has mentioned this. It's like you're a sell-out if you spend money on ads because if you have a good product then it should sell itself - Er no, that's not the case at all. It's hard to get customers even with a lot of free marketing, and by free marketing, I mean not paying another company for ads. But not free in the sense that it still costs you time to promote your product. I actually think spending money on ads is the wisest thing you can do. Great post!
TLDR: you need a way to get to your customers faster than tweeting into the void and relying on outdated Product Hunt. If that takes money, do it (within reason).
TAKEAWAY: advice from successful business owners can be clouded with survivorship bias.
spending money on the ads is good but put the ads investment on the right keyword and specific people works well!
Spending money on ads is okay. I just think you need to have a good "why". It does seem wasteful much of VC funding dollars go to "buying" audience attention - something like 40% of VC dollars are spend on PPC ads. But then again, marketing is essential. It's important to produce a product that grows via word of mouth, but a decent amount of ad-spent might be necessary (and continual) to kick that process off.
Who is Lisa and why she posted another indie hacker's article here?
It is normal to post links on HackerNews, not so here?
I thought, yes, if the link is yours.
People post others links on HackerNews all the time.
If it would be interesting to hackers, they post it. Doesn't have to be theirs.
My biggest post ever on HN was a blog post from another company. They loved the exposure.
There are other, more suitable resources, like Twitter or Reddit. The goal of IH was to stimulate hackers to exchange their experiences, not just links. It turns IH into a big trash can. Do we need it? I don't think so.
Another consideration is people can think Lisa is an author whereas she is not.
A big part of this is that I think a distinction needs to be made between first-time entrepreneur and first-time marketer. These are not one in the same. If you don't know how to get sales, even if your offer is good you should get help with it from the start. Make your business your journey, not struggling to learn marketing. Hope this helps!
Thanks for the perspective, @jakobgreenfeld!
The key is to not spend money before you make money, in my eyes. So, spending money on ads too early on, and then your product still fails, could be a quick route to bankruptcy. I think you need to get your product to a point where you already have good interest and then use the ad spend to attract even more users in your specific target audience.
learned a lot