You are a solo developer? Write "I" instead of "We"!
Motivation
The times where only big companies are trusted are over. More and more indie developers have created amazing platforms and products like Nomadlist, Ghost, Photopea and many more. Kudos to all of you ♥️
People trust them and are more than happy to support them. Besides the great product, we know who is on the other side. A real person. Why this is so important? It helps to build trust and a connection with our user base. Especially if the product is not 100% polished and bug-free. It is so much easier to be angry about an unfinished product built by a company. Why? Because a company has no face (unless you are Elon Musk maybe 😂 ). But if there is only one person behind it, how can I be angry about what they have accomplished? I am happy to report the bug and wait for it to get solved.
No more fake
Thanks to social media, a world was created where we only share the best sides of our life. Or worse, even fake those moments. I am scared to be vulnerable. I think we all are. But I also think we have reached a point where we are all seeking authentic and real people.
Over 1 year has passed since I started
For a long time, I wasn't sure whether it is good to show everyone that there is only one person behind Resoume or not.
I thought this might give you the impression that Resoume is too small or not good enough to give it a try. And because of that, I used the word “We” instead of “I” on all pages. Hiding behind a wall. There was also no About page for a long long time.
So who is behind it?
Well, it is only me. No team, no funding. Just a guy and his laptop.
A year has passed now. It was just me at the beginning. But Resoume has grown a lot since then. It is not so small anymore. Thousands have joined and trusted me. Every feedback you gave me has helped me to create a better product for you.
Thank you for your trust ❤️
PS: I decided to build in public and if you would like to follow along here is my Twitter
Interesting post! Can I ask you what is your major struggle as a solo developer, compared to a developer in a big company?
I think the emotional connection is the biggest one. If I work in a big company and someone criticizes the product I will most likely hear nothing about it as a developer because there are multiple layers in between (customer support, manager, POs etc).
Also, I would not care as much about it. I could love the product but in the end, it is not my product, I get paid to be here.
But as a solo dev. you are responsible for everything. Every critic feels more like a direct critic to you. That can be thought sometimes. And of course, you are responsible for everything, you have to make all decisions. It doesn't bother me but this might not be for everyone.
This comment was deleted 4 years ago
Yup, I had been doing the same thing with Tutorbook for a while. Now, I try to use "I" in place of "we" (e.g. in our README) because I'm the only one working on it.
good on you building in public!
Thanks 😊
I always had the feeling that there is no time in a day to do it as an indie developer. But recently started to make it part of my morning ritual and it seems to work quite well.
really does. small deposits over a long period of time. this is the way.
I would recommend to be only authentic. Don't try to be something or somebody you are not.
If you are a solo developer, but have other developers who contribute, say I or WE.. but if you say WE, explain that it is you and your Partner-Network.
Don't pretend you are a big agency!
Don't mind if your project or company is looking big -or not - in other opinions. If you are solo, and your customer will not bye caused of this... it's OK, just focus on those one who are fine with it.
For example: We start just-sell.online some weeks ago and we are two developers. But anyway, if I talk to promising contacts or customers to describe our Product, I often say I.. my Project.. and so on.
Not to hide my partner and catch honor for myself!!
It's like people talking about "My Soccer-Team doing this or that".
It's a kind of identification with my (our) product.
If they wanna know if I am "only" a solo developer, I tell them, no we are two.... BUT I don't feel small because we are "only" two and not a big agency as the asking one might expected (or wasn't like to see)
And same is in the other way around: if I would be only a solo developer I would say it proudly.
I think your product or your company mostly will be valued / rated in the same way, as "you see yourself", your project or your company.
TRUST in yourself, and TRUST in your Product.
STOP trying, START DOING!
Having dealt with similar for 14 years full-time freelance designer, I believe we have long surpassed the idea that one person can't run a successful product or company. If you use freelancers or collaborate with others (as I do with my own consulting company), feel free to use 'we'. If you do all of the work fully indie, use 'I' and don't hide from it. Be proud of it. It's an amazing accomplishment to go it alone and put something out in the world.
Exactly! I cant agree more 😎
Saw the platform, signed up and loved. Awesome and being a solo, it is unbelievable. Great and keep going
Thank you 🥰
Haha I’ve been wondering for a while what I should put down 😂
I did the same on my latest project (see e.g. https://www.fiends.io/faq), and I share the same sentiment. I think those who disagree are probably going more for the "enterprise" customer, where varying levels of bosses may have to approve the purchase/expense, and I can understand in that scenario wanting to look more... "professional" I guess, from their perspective.
I personally disagree with this, I tried writing "I" in all the places but it just felt wrong. Plus, it is very uncommon to be only yourself, you still account on other services or persons (eg. accountant, freelancers) and are most likely a legal entity, which can definitely and should be referred as "we" not "I".
I think this is complete and utter BS.
I have been on the cusp of closing a big customer for a SaaS and they hit me with the objection: "we're concerned about your scale."
Use whatever credibility hacks you can to look established.
Thanks for that 😂
That is indeed sad to hear 😔
I don’t know if pretending to be more people helps in the long run but if it works for you, sure!
Edit: formatting
This is sad, for an solo entrepreneur, but I'm fine with it, if it's happen to me.
Even some bigger companies have to minimize their risk. (Not hope so, but) what if the single owner of an promising SaaS Service had an accident that permit him to continue his business from one second to the next second.
We must see both sides of the coins. Be glad if customers go the way with you, but don't be angry or sad about those one who don't try the risk.
Thanks for your response.
Good luck driving traffic to your app.
@Gobie This applies not just to developers but other functions as well.
I recently had this same talk with a UX friend and a copywriter friend. The question I asked both was, "What is your end goal?" Are you trying to build an agency or just freelance until you get something else off the ground. In both cases freelancing is a means to an end, so they dropped the whole "We" nonsense.
P.S. Saw your post about Resoume last week on Reddit. Really dig your product.
True, it applies to every role! I should have made it clear in the post. But hey, we have a community here to make things right :)
P.S oh the world is small, thank you 😄
The site looks good but that "I" vs "We" resonated with the most. Honestly, what are the metrics we are using to determine a solo endeavor vs one with contract workers and minimal staff (meaning you are the only developer)?
I'm just curious because even though I never think to be a Google or think most founders are going for that level it's still a team effort with contractors and even the users who give feedback to a degree.
This comment was deleted 4 years ago
You are right, it is not always good to say the product is made by a single person, especially in B2B, which makes sense.
But the alternative sounds not great to me. I would hide myself behind the companies name and pretend to be more than just one, which is a lie.
I don't know about you but sometimes when I'm referring to myself as we I am actually using the 'royal we'. It's not a a lie to us, we just have high self esteem and as such, we use the majestic plural to remind ourselves of how great we are(we'll be?).
I like the sound of “royal we”. But sure, this is just my personal opinion and I don’t force anyone to do anything. Whatever works for you is good!
This comment was deleted 4 years ago
I love the discussion here 😄
Everyone has their own learnings and findings and it is great to here different stories.
I think that’s the takeaway. For me it was all about integrity and take the step to show that there is fact only one person. And that we should be proud of what we have created.
This comment was deleted 4 years ago
This comment was deleted 4 years ago