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Before we start:
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Every year, there’s a new tech trend in the market.
And everyone tries to build that.
I have a better idea for you:
Build what people want (Not What You Think Is Cool)
I followed this myself.
Two timelines. Same founder.
Completely different results.
Let me show you what changed everything 👇
Timeline 1: 2015-2019
- Built 2 "next Facebook" startups
- Raised hundreds of thousands
- Hired 15+ people teams
- Zero validation, sold dreams
- Failed miserably
Classic first-time founder mistakes.
I thought about the product first, everything else second.
Timeline 2: 2021-2025
- Built 30+ products
- 3 grew over $100k+ MRR (4th coming 👀)
- Validate everything first
- Ask for payment upfront
- Tiny teams, code myself
- Fully bootstrapped
PSST 🤫- if you want to see the 4th startup of mine which will reach 100k - checkout outrank.so
What Changed?
One simple realization:
Distribution > Product
Validation > Selling
Freedom > Billions
"First-time founders think about the product. Second-time founders think about distribution first."
This was true 10 years ago. It's even more true today.
Here's what we did differently:
Instead of building blindly, we:
- Picked ONE target audience (creators)
- Focused on ONE specific problem (making more sales)
- Built 30+ solutions for the SAME people
Here’s how that mattered 👇🏻
Every time we shipped a new product:
- We talked to the same audience
- Our X following grew slightly
- Our newsletter subscriber base expanded
- Each launch had more distribution advantage
We weren't just building products. We were building an audience.
An audience that does the same things, have a the same problems, and can use our help.
The "One Product Per Week" Strategy
We challenged ourselves to ship one product every week until something stuck.
But here's the key:
We didn't do it randomly.
Every single product was:
- For creators
- Solving the sales problem
- Slightly different angle
That’s how we stumbled on Tweet Hunter which led to the $8m acquisition (with Taplio)
This is the major change in how I work now:
Before: "What cool product can I build?"
Now: "What problem can I solve for people who already follow me?"
Before: Build, then figure out marketing
Now: Build an audience, then serve them
The Real Truth About Building
Stop trying to be the next unicorn.
Start solving real problems people pay for.
The difference between failure and success isn't:
- Better code
- More funding
- Bigger teams
- Cooler features
It's building what people actually want and can find.
Here’s the action plan:
- Pick ONE audience
- Find their ONE biggest problem
- Build multiple solutions for THAT problem
- Build in public to that audience
- Let each product compound your distribution
The best product that no one knows about loses to the "good enough" product that everyone sees.
Focus on distribution first.
Build for people, not platforms.
Solve real problems, not imaginary ones.
Hit reply and tell me - who is your ONE target audience? 👇🏻
Tweet of the week
Reminder:
You don't HAVE to do this.
You GET to do this.
Keep building (for real people) 💻
Tibo
P.S. If you're still chasing unicorns instead of solving problems, this is your wake-up call.
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