One year of work. Finished product. Zero sales. I decided the problem was that the product was too complex. Turns out — the problem was me.
What Happened: One Year → Zero Sales
I sold on Amazon myself and knew — it would be great to have a tool for analysing products. Not just one product, but an entire niche. See the full picture, find the gaps.
Started building it alongside my main job. Technically, everything worked — the service would take a niche and deliver results.
When the product was "ready", I lost interest. Only then did I realise the truth: I wanted to learn the technology, not build a product. Couldn't explain who needs it and why. Didn't see the real problem I was solving.
But there was another reason. Sales — that was scary. I didn't believe I could bring something meaningful that could solve someone's real problem. Strange, isn't it? You can build a complex system, but don't believe you can help a person.
First Attempt to Fix It: Mini Apps
After Amazon, I realised: I have zero marketing knowledge. Decided to learn the basics — starting with non-technical products to focus on sales, not development.
Sold a couple of courses through social media, understood how offers, creatives, and funnels work. The same product can be presented differently — it will sell differently.
Saw that B2C is hard — people are price-sensitive, you need a lot of focus on creatives. But I want to build technical products for businesses. The logic there is simpler: provide value and savings — it works.
Decided on mini apps for B2B. And immediately got stuck: how do I sell? Thought platforms would help — there's traffic, and we can focus on the product. But I can't even write to the right person. Don't know how to start a conversation.
Turns out, the problem isn't the product size. The problem — I don't know how to sell.
The Real Problem — I Don't Know How to Sell
The most interesting insight for me was about product packaging.
Technically, everything is simple: 1 + 1 = 2. There's a bug — it means you did something wrong somewhere. Logic, cause and effect, the right answer.
But packaging for a client is different. One offer won't work because the person doesn't see a solution to their problem. Another offer works because it addresses their exact problem. Same product, different words — different result. And there's no "right answer" here. You need to talk to people.
A developer is used to solving technical problems. Docker, RabbitMQ, architecture — you'll figure it out, there's documentation, there's logic. But sales is a different skill. Identify the need, formulate an offer, and start a conversation without seeming pushy.
I never did this. Not at work, not freelancing. And I was scared to start a conversation with a client. Honestly, even now it's not very clear how to do it — I just decided to pursue it. But at least now I understand what exactly I don't know.
When I realised mini apps weren't the solution, I felt a sense of relief. Finally understood what to do. Because what's most frustrating is when something doesn't work and you don't understand why.
Step Back — Freelancing as a Training Ground
How did I come to the idea of freelancing? Same way as with courses — looked at what was missing.
Missing sales skills. Can I separate this, not combine all skills at once? Yes. To build SaaS, you need to both build the product and sell it. But I can use my technical skills — they're already there — and try selling myself on freelance. No product investment needed.
What exactly do I want to train? Identifying client needs. Clients often don't know what they want. You need to know how to identify it. Plus negotiation — how to start a conversation, how not to seem pushy, how to formulate an offer so the person sees a solution to their problem.
How is this related to SaaS? If I'm selling to companies, I'm still selling to one person. The one who'll go on a demo with me. Freelancing is one-on-one sales in its purest form. SaaS is the same skill, just scaled to many.
Freelancing — minimal stakes. Failed negotiations — lost one project, not a business. Each client is a practice. 10, maybe 20 clients — hard to say how many it takes. But the criterion is simple: when I'm not scared to talk to a client. When I can calmly schedule a call and talk.
Doing this alongside my main job — as I mentioned before . Stability on one side gives the ability to experiment on the other.
Conclusion:
Wanted to skip a stage — didn't work. Building a product without knowing how to sell is like writing a book in a language you don't know. Freelancing isn't a step back, but an unfinished foundation. Now the plan is simple: learn to sell to one → then scale to many.
