A Bit of SaaS Weekly: Prerevenue MicroSaaS
This is a weekly newsletter on the Software as a Service world. Learning, building, and shipping. Written by Ethan Mick.
Exploring some ideas this past week led me to Acquire.com, where I read over and over the phrase Pre-revenue MicroSaaS, which to me, translated to "I built this in a weekend and think I can sell it.
The Best Bits
- NextUI v2 is out, rewritten in Tailwind and React Aria!
- Learn more about React Server Components.
- Lucia 2, an authentication library.
- Run Llama 2 uncensored, locally.
Please Buy my Pre-revenue MicroSaaS
It's a dream of many people to build a product and sell it, reaping the rewards and fame of exiting a business. I've had those thoughts a lot too.
There's just a catch.
You need to sell a business, not a weekend hackathon project. And selling a business requires actually having a business, not just some code.
And that's hard.
A business needs users, usage, and a brand.
The first aspect that prospective buyers will look at is the user base and usage of your app. These metrics are often considered more important than the technology itself, as they provide a snapshot of the business's existing reach and the extent to which its software is utilized.
Even a pre-revenue MicroSaaS business with a burgeoning user base should show promise because a large number of users typically indicates a significant market need or interest. Moreover, high user engagement and usage statistics signal the utility and popularity of the software.
Of course, if the user base shows promise... why are you selling it?
Most of the time, these apps are not growing and do not show promise. They often were launched on Product Hunt or Hacker News and got some initial interest, only for that to fade quickly. In the graph below, these apps are in the trough of sorrow.
When you get into the promised land, you no longer have a hackathon project. You have a business. And a business requires a brand.
The brand of a SaaS business often plays a pivotal role in its potential success and saleability. A strong brand helps a business to stand out from the competition, promotes customer loyalty, and can serve as a significant draw for potential buyers.
Branding isn't just about having a catchy name or an attractive logo. It's about creating a unique identity that encompasses everything from the company's mission and values to its customer service. A strong brand story can influence how the market perceives the company and the value it provides.
These are things that will get someone to buy your business. But just having some code is the equivalent of having an idea. And ideas aren't worth anything.
So what business are you building?
Learn to Build SaaS
This doesn't let you upload files to Vercel btw, just how to get the data without a third-party library.
This one is either going to be lots of fun or the death of me. Take a look; the idea is to build a SaaS app with the idea of selling it. That means focusing a bit on the business side of things, not just the tech.
And lastly, no preview for this one because it's scheduled for Friday morning: https://youtu.be/5_JT9H8j1Us
I've been on a roll! I came back from vacation, itching to get some content done. I'm trying to do more content that is less perfect but still good. I've left some "ums" in and cut down a lot on the editing. Let me know what you think!
Tech Tip
Today during the live stream, I found out that Amazon has a V3 version of their JavaScript SDK: https://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSJavaScriptSDK/v3/latest/
If you don't use it, it shows a big nasty warning in your project, so they clearly want people to upgrade.
Their docs, as usual, are awful, but to get started with a service, you now do:
npm install @aws-sdk/client-s3Instead of installing aws-sdk.
Happy coding!
Cloud Chronicles
- YouTube Subscribers: 1,873 (+82 in the last 7 days)
- Newsletter Members: 451 (+25 in the last 7 days)
Estimated revenue from YouTube ads? $6.54. Niiiiicccee.
Still, it's a step in the right direction. At this rate, it'll take me 4 months to get my first check for $100 (the lower limit of what they pay out). I guess I'll keep my day job.
Last Byte
- Optimize your React code.
- How to get ChatGPT to stop apologizing?
- Make your mouse work better on Macs (some good suggestions in the comments too).