You don’t need 10,000 followers to win

Do not index

Most people think you need 10,000 followers before you can earn money.

I built and sold two products, Tweet Hunter and Taplio, for $8m with barely any followers.

The big audience came during the journey. I started from zero, same as everyone reading this.

Everyone's timeline is flooded with AI slop right now. And it’s a perfect time to stand out.

Here's what actually works in content when you're starting from nothing:

(This works great for builders 👇🏼)

1. Build as you post. Post as you build.

It's not one then the other. It's both at the same time, feeding each other.

Nobody was watching me when I built the first version of Tweet Hunter. But the small things I did post kept me visible enough that when the product started working, people were already paying attention.

You don't need the audience before you start. But don't ignore it either.

Build in public from day 1.

2. Proof beats cleverness

People complain about seeing too many MRR screenshots, but they work because they're proof.

If you don't have revenue yet, show something else. Testimonials, output counts, before and after comparisons.

When Outrank.so users post about their DR jumping, that screenshot does more than any clever AI tweet could do.

3. The post is not where the deal happens

Most of my conversions happen in DMs, not comments.

A post turns a cold DM into a warm one. That's its actual job.

Post, then reach out to the people who engaged.

Here’s an entire article telling how to win at social media with 0 followers.

4. Do what you said you'd do

It's wild how many people DM me saying they'll do an audit or send over a resource to prove they're good at something, and 80% of the time, I never hear from them again.

Just following through on a small promise puts you ahead of most people online right now.

5. Give before you ask

I gave 17 creators 0.1% equity in Tweet Hunter. No strings attached.

Most of them ended up promoting it anyway because they wanted to.

Full story and the actual contract here: How we raised brains, not money.

6. Consistency compounds, virality doesn't

One viral post gets you a 48 hour spike. Showing up every day is what actually matters.

This is the entire reason SuperX (for X) and PostSyncer (for everything else) exist.

7. Your work is your content

I stopped asking myself what to post and started asking what I actually did that day worth sharing. The content already exists inside the work. You just have to say it out loud.

8. Specificity is the only hook that doesn't get old

"How I grew Outrank to $274k MRR" will always beat "software growth tips."

Always ask: “Can someone else post exactly this and get away with it?”

If yes, make it personal to you. This works because people love stories.

Storytelling is king.

9. Your failures are content too

Only posting wins makes people trust you a little less. Because everybody fails.

I've written entire newsletters about products I killed, and those get more replies than most of my win posts. If you haven't read it, here’s a link to all my failures.

10. Reply to every comment when starting out

Post and disappear, and you're just broadcasting.

Sticking around and engaging is what turns a post into a conversation, and that's what the algorithm and the humans both notice.

You won't be great at all 10 right away. I'm still not.

Pick 3 you're not doing at all and start there.

Reply and tell me 👇🏼

Do you have a social media rule of your own? Share it with me, and I might share it in a future edition with your name 👀

Life of an Indie Maker #09 - Who stole my supercomputer?!

The latest episode of my weekly animated series is now out! Check it out here:

Tweet of the week

If you are using Fable to plan your entire life, this is the best time to ship!

Until next week,

Keep building

Tibo 💻

P.S. Rule 5 gets the most replies whenever I mention it. If you want the actual contract I used for the 0.1% equity deal, share this newsletter and reply with the link. I'll send it over (and repost your tweet!)