No one cares about your projects
Lately I've been trying to figure out how to do some marketing and build some audience.
Just looked at what other people were doing, and copied that.
Not much, just sharing some update on what I'm working on and such.
But I realized that... it's just nosense.
No one cares about my projects, or yours.
No one cares what you're working on today.
I like the indie hackers community, but it's so full of noise and fake networking.
We're all the protagonists of our own story, focused on our struggles and goals.
No one is going to take resources off its own journey for yours.
Unless you provide something that people actually need.
I'm looking for a way to provide some real value, out of my humble experiences.
I still haven't figured it out, but I have some idea.
Wrote a twitter thread about it: https://twitter.com/daniel_q40/status/1650104087504097280
There are only two ways you're getting attention here.
1- You provide real value by educating on subjects you're competent in.
2- You're Good at storytelling.
I think people care, if you can show them something that makes them excited! For a long time, OpenAI talked about AI and not many people cared... until they released chatgpt 🔥
This is a good point, and shows that people might start to care when you already done something, not much in the process.
I was thinking yesterday that it all comes down to Authority.
But for the one of us who haven't done anything remarkable and have no Authority, the strategy must be different.
Yes, I agree!
As indie developers, we have to be fine to keep trying > keep learning > keep improving. There WILL be (some) success, eventually!
your right!
I don't think it's the "product" you should be focusing on when sharing in a community like IndieHackers - unless this is your customer niche. It's the story and the JOURNEY that people MIGHT care about.
Build an audience on your STORY about the journey. Both the ups AND downs. I think that's what pulls 'followers'.
I certainly haven't cracked the code, but this is typically why I follow the founders who build in public that I do.
Also, it is a GREAT accountability tool. I don't share what I build in any meaningful way with most of the people I know, so I am not accountable to anyone but myself and I am not the best task master :) So I find just posting periodic updates here, on Twitter, on Reddit at least keeps me 'accountable' to what I pretend are people watching me.
Obviously if you can find your target market and a way to build in front of them, and if your product is useful to them, they will probably care about it - once they can see it come together and recognize how it can help them.
Yeah, I think this hits the nail on the head. Building in public certainly isn't a replacement for exploring other customer acquisition channels. It serves an entirely different purpose, with the rare exception being that your target audience for your product is the same as the types of people who'd be interested in build in public stories.
Agree, Feels like all the successful indiehackers make courses about indiehacking, write books or newsletters about indiehacking, or build products for other indiehackers to use. It feels like we are attending a 'get rich quick' seminar where the only people making money are the ones hosting the event.
I want to hear from people who build shit that helps actual people.
feels like a Ponzi scheme indeed, at times
There's many people that do build shit it's just their success or formula cannot be replicated. Or if it can you are going to reap just 1/10 of their revenue as a best case scenario.
Looking through podcast episodes and https://www.indiehackers.com/products, I don't get that impression at all. Some successful indie hackers do what you describe but I'm not seeing any that didn't make money with something "real" first.
Hey there! It's cool that you're trying to build an audience through marketing. But let's be real, copying what others are doing might not work out in the end. I get it - we're all too busy with our own stuff to care about someone else's projects. Unless you offer something that people actually need.
That's why it's awesome that you're thinking about providing real value based on your own experiences. Keep at it!
Slowly trying to figure it out, thanks
Plot twist - OP understands marketing and realizes posting something divisive will result in engagement
I'm a real n00b, and we can twist that statement to:
"OP is learning marketing, and wanted to see if an honest, but strong and potentially divisive opinion will result in engagement"
Small experiments, gathering data
Reading my mind there :)
"Unless you provide something that people actually need."
I feel like you're answering your own question, here 😅
This isn't only an issue for the indiehacker #buildinpublic world.
It's also true in every single market. It doesn't matter what you sell, the truth is that very few people in your target market are actively looking to buy the solution that you sell.
Talking about your product, explaining what it is, features, benefits etc. is only going to appeal to that tiny % of active buyers who are very hard to find.
I think it's a numbers game at the initial stage. If we post a lot, eventually some people will relate to this. Once we hit a few hundred followers the attention will grow rapidly. But it's true getting this first few hundred followers takes time and luck in lot of the cases.
This is so true, I posted a feedback request recently in the forum and got literally zero response.
Looked at your post. https://www.indiehackers.com/post/new-tool-needs-your-thoughts-d55012f7f6
Here's my meta thoughts:
I was thinking it's kinda sad too and how to fix the state of IH.
For me its relatively simple, just delete all the obvious garbage posts.
Dont allow newsletters, dont allow podcasts, dont allow "collection of things" websites. Make it actually "hacking".
I had some more thoughts, but then I realized the incentives are misaligned.
Users who feel like us would get way more value from a smaller, more focused site.
But a smaller, more focused site makes less money, so it's never gonna happen.
There are several other -smaller- alternatives to indiehackers. It's not about the money since being smaller means it costs less. Being smaller means there aren't enough activity and eyes on it.
i love your thoughts very much, such amazing use of words.
The only way to grow as a creator is to provide value and gain value. The more value you put out there to the right people, the more you earn back.
You have to give some value if you want people talking about you.
If it was easy everyone will do it :-)
The truth has been said, no one cares, nor about your products, nor about what you do outside of your startup.
I definitely have to object here. If you think your mission is to get sales or push your product, yes, this won't work.
But there are actually people that have working businesses and the hard part is finding a way to make them more money / save more money. If you do that, people magically will care about your product.
As someone who can feel overwhelmed and spiral about the noise / meaninglessness of so much of the interactions I see online everywhere (the ChatGPT commenters don't help either) - I agree that sharing your work can feel like a) shouting into the void and b) adding to the pointless chaos.
But 2 things keep me going:
I do see some people genuinely sharing what they're building and I'm interested and curious and become invested in them and want them to succeed. Therefore, I can see the reverse being true if I share openly and generously. The right people will find it/me eventually.
Focusing on helping other people -- encouraging and offering useful feedback -- feels good and is a way to combat the noise. To be on the positive side of things.
I read your Twitter thread and it sounds like you have a real desire to create content that has a bit more depth and value -- looking forward to checking it out!
People defiantly care it just comes down if they relate or not right? Not everybody orders the same thing on the menu but we all browse the menu until we see something that we like, then we order.
Trust me, people care. We don't always have to respond, but we read, listen, and consider everything said and done on here. You'll be alright. Just gotta separate the wheat from the chaff.
I do care :) 😎
I appreciate the honesty of you. It can be easy to get caught up in our own projects and assume that everyone else will be just as excited about them as we are. But the reality is that there are so many projects out there, and it takes more than just a good idea to get people interested. Marketing and promotion are also key factors in getting our projects noticed. It's not enough to simply build something and hope that people will find it. We need to actively promote our projects, engage with our audience, and provide value beyond just the product itself.
I think it's a lot of self promotion here, but on the other side it helps people to "get out of the building" exposing themselves to a community not judging very harsh. I think lowering the bar for posting obviously brings a lot of noise, and like always most of the projects are created to fail, same for the quality of the posts. But a few will thrive.
There are other communities especially on reddit which are on the other extreme, penalizing self promotion, but personally I don't like those.
I'm more annoyed by the chatgpt generated content that I can sometimes spot here.
I think younger developers looking to learn new skills are roped into creating copy paste projects that have ZERO value to anyone. Even when learning a new language or framework, even slightly novel ideas that solve even a small problem for a user can make you stand out massively.
I like seeing ppl build stuff–may or may not be software. As long as it shows they are walking the walk
I do agree a lot of those 'learning' posts are just self promotion in disguise
I agree with the sentiment.. if winning means I then have to write an ebook about how I did it, or sell a gum road course on how you can do what I did.. I'll pass.
There seems to be less advice on here about the stages builders are likely to go through and how to navigate them.. maybe this is just another market place after all.
I don't always think it's right. If people appreciate when you give them what they need, I agree with you. Why would they spend time on your product unless you offer a good reason or value?
Due to the value proposition, at the start of every business, they offer a free product worth $$ or $$$ per month. It's just a simple value proposition.
Yes, if the product itself isn't interesting to people, the surrounding content won't capture their interest either. 🤷
I've faced the same problem, so now I'm considering two options:
I wish it was like you said, but I currently really can't agree on this.
Whoever has a big enough audience can put out whatever bullshit they want, and it'll make money.
I'm obviously talking from a more generic perspective.
I think if you can gather an audience, you can then work your way up to build something helpful for them (content/product).
yea of course noone cares about your project. that's always been true, welcome to business. your project does and always had had to serve a need in the market. the last 3 years we've had an insane financial bubble which blurred this a bit and people pumped out poor products with tons of VC money behind them.
welcome to the real reality.
I agree somewhat with what you say however I've come to the conclusion that I must find the type of person that actually uses the product I am producing.
They are the ones that will pay for it and use it, and give the correct feedback; because for them it's valuable.
It's understandable to feel discouraged when it seems like no one is paying attention to your projects or updates. However, it's important to keep in mind that building an audience and gaining attention takes time and effort. It's not uncommon for people to feel like they are just adding to the noise when trying to promote their work.
But it's important not to let that discourage you from sharing your projects and ideas. Even if it feels like no one is listening, there is always the possibility that someone is interested and may find value in what you have to offer. I've been blogging and sharing content for years with some success. I even got lucky with my first blog post going viral and making my first money online. It still amazes me when I hear from people that have used my products or when my blog posts helped them solve an issue. It's important to keep publishing and producing content because, eventually, it will get traction.
Additionally, focusing on providing value to others is a great way to gain attention and build an audience. By thinking about your audience's problems or needs, you can tailor your projects and updates to address those issues.
Remember that building an audience is a process, and it takes time. Don't give up on your projects or ideas because you feel like no one is listening. Keep pushing forward and focus on providing value to others.
did you use chatgpt to write this?
I agree! And most important, I guess, is that many people tell you, when you start you'll make your first users through the community. bah, thats like asking your family to buy your product. They'll love it but they are no real customers. The only way is to build a valuable product and do some old fashioned marketing.
No one cares about you, this is how life is. Accepting it is the real truth, so this is true when people say "give or create value", once "you're the hype" everyone will try to get something from you (attention, advice, networking, etc) .
They do care if you really help them.
Of if you talk about the problem on their perspective.
Or is it not?
Real talk, I figured out that if you don't do it yourself, none will at your place and I also found out that the best problems to solve (in a business/projects perspective) are yours first.
How many times do you see people that launch successfull products or build a following just by creating things for themselfs, share it or put it out there for other people to try out and guess what, people might want it, but it's not deliberate.
We are on the fake linkedin twitter "CEO" era.
Care less, work more, cheers.
Does anyone have any alternatives to this indie hacker community that they take part in? Maybe facebook groups, or something. I think that indie hackers will develop since the creators seem ready to put a lot of work into it, but we just have to give it time.
Honestly...I think that direct promotion should be banned, unless it directly provides value.
There are no communities like the one you are looking for, nothing is given.
2 options are available, you make your own community that gravitates around your products and ecosystem or you can try to make your way in very small communities (most likely locally where you live).
Only then you could have a monopoly on things.
Thank you for replying! Your advice means a lot.
Good point. Truly, nothing is given.
But honestly what I'm doing isn't that big since I'm just doing web design for peeps. I've gotten my first couple clients, but now I want to work towards getting consistent flow-in.
I'm thinking along the lines of offering a ton of value to people in the field that I'm in so that people can naturally reach out to me if they want to work with me. Plus, helping out people is always a good thing too.
Any ideas for communities that could be good for this I've joined multiple facebook groups but so far they seem kinda scammy-ish I think I'll have to keep looking.
yeah most communities are sloppy, it's very hard to find an active serious bunch of people that act more than talk.
maybe put your work out there on social media, portfolio or whatever is the way of doing it on your domain/niche, if you show people you are competent and a man of action, they will want to contact you and stay around you.
i feel if your target users aren't (all) hacker, founders, vcs, techies, go to the community where your rest of real users hang out- usually they are more friendly because they got less spams...
My post is a meta, it's not related to my projects.
And it's a write up coming from my thoughts about how to create value (as content) to share online.
Even if I use "you" or "we", most often I talk to myself.
Whether people notice your BIP posts depends on a lot of things-
I need actual Hacks, step by step guides. When i watch microconf vids of people talking about their journey or 1 year growth, all the graphs and stuff they post is super insightful. I haven't watched the Indiehacker podcasts (people keep telling me to lol) but i'm definite the IH team can be the driver of most of the "usefulness" in the solopreneur community
"Unless you provide something that people actually need."
- People need that noise and fake networking.
Do they?
Or they do it as copycat, with the hope to gain one more follower, one more like?
What if the entire paradigma is wrong, and people just fall into it because they don't know better (and don't have the time/energy to stop and analyze what they're doing?)?
One more like is better than zero. Do it with a group of 10 and you'll get the most highlight. It could be wrong until it's proven to be. It provides results with minimal effort.
Also, it's cheaper to like and put a positive comment on something than put in weeks to discover something useful and share it for free - what they call "provide value".
You are right. I have stopped to BIP, I only share 5% of what I am working on... It's pointless...
I think, in the end, people might take an interest in the person and then, as a consequence, in the projects he's working on.
I'll stop too sharing every detail of my projects, just post meaningful milestones.
Yeah, that happens.
But what it also happens is that competence starts to follow and comment negative stuff...
Unleash Your creativity and find a team to be noticed by ppl https://lablab.ai/blog/unleashing-creativity-with-ai-top-5-app-ideas-for-your-next-ai-hackathon
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