Originally published on Solo Launches — a platform helping solo founders get early traffic, impressions, and clicks.
Getting your first 100 users is one of the hardest milestones for any solo founder.
Not because your product is bad — but because distribution doesn’t come for free.
You can build for weeks or months and still struggle to get noticed. Here’s a realistic, no-hype playbook to get your first users without paid ads, even if you’re starting from zero.
Why the First 100 Users Matter
Your first users help you:
- Validate that your product solves a real problem
- Get honest feedback
- Build momentum and confidence
- Create early social proof
You don’t need scale yet.
You need signal.
Step 1: Define Your ICP Clearly
Before marketing anything, answer this in one line:
Who is this product for, and what painful problem does it solve?
Bad:
- “A tool for everyone”
Good:
- “A launch platform for solo founders who don’t want to rely on Product Hunt”
Clarity makes every post, reply, and outreach 10x more effective.
Step 2: Borrow Existing Attention
Early users don’t magically appear. You need to launch where people already hang out.
Good places:
- Founder-focused launch platforms
- Indie communities
- X (Twitter)
- Reddit (carefully)
- Niche Slack / Discord groups
Founder-first platforms help you:
- Get indexed on Google
- Appear in front of people actively looking for tools
- Gain impressions and clicks without ads
This alone can drive your first 10–30 users.
Step 3: Do Manual Outreach (Human-First)
Manual outreach works if it doesn’t feel like spam.
Where to find users:
- Twitter replies
- Indie Hacker discussions
- Reddit threads complaining about the problem you solve
How to message:
- Don’t pitch in the first line
- Start with the problem
- Ask for feedback, not signups
Example:
“Saw you mention struggling with launches. I’m building something around that — would love honest feedback if you’re open.”
Even a 10% reply rate is enough early on.
Step 4: Build in Public
People follow progress, not perfection.
Share things like:
- “What surprised me after getting 10 users”
- “A feature I built today based on user feedback”
- “Mistakes I made during launch”
This works well on:
- X
- Indie Hackers
- LinkedIn (for B2B)
You’re documenting, not selling.
Step 5: Reduce Friction
Make it easy to try:
- Simple landing page
- Clear CTA
- Minimal onboarding
- No forced credit card (if possible)
Your first users are exploring — respect that.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Waiting too long to launch
- Building in isolation
- Posting links without context
- Chasing vanity metrics
Early growth is manual and messy. That’s normal.
A Simple 7-Day Action Plan
Day 1: Launch on a founder platform
Day 2: Share your story on X
Day 3: Reply to 10 relevant posts
Day 4: Share progress
Day 5: Do 5 manual outreaches
Day 6: Improve landing page copy
Day 7: Ask users what confused them
Repeat.
Want visibility as a solo founder?
I’m building Solo Launches to help founders get early traffic and real users — without paid ads or launch hype.
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