A few SaaS mantras get repeated so often they start to feel like gospel. But like most things in early-stage startups, context matters more than catchphrases.
Here are three pieces of advice I think founders should question more based on my experience at Truffle:
1) “Don’t give your product away for free.”
Sure, you’ll need to charge eventually. But in the early days? Giving it away can be gold.
You’ll get real feedback fast, see how actual users behave (versus what they say they want), and build early relationships that compound over time. Those learnings are worth way more than $19/month in the beginning. And in many cases, it’s more useful than just interviewing people you think are your ICP.
2) “Don’t run ads until you’ve hit product-market fit.”
I get the intent—don’t light money on fire. But there’s nuance.
Spending a few hundred bucks on Google Search ads can be one of the most efficient ways to test positioning, messaging, and landing page performance. If there’s intent and search volume, you’ll learn faster than you would doing cold outreach or waiting for SEO to kick in. Especially if you’re solo or moving fast.
3) “SEO takes forever.”
It can. But it doesn’t have to.
If you go after high-intent, low-competition keywords and publish content that actually solves user problems, you can see traffic and conversions sooner than you think. Throw in a handful of good backlinks and you’re off to the races. It’s not just a long game if you’re intentional about it.
The takeaway? Best practices are a starting point—not a rulebook.
What worked for someone else at $10M ARR might not make sense when you’re just trying to get 10 users. Question the defaults. Context is king.
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