Two weeks after launching Buildside, 130 people had joined.
I did not have an ad budget or a huge email list. There was no secret growth trick. I grew Buildside by sharing the journey on X and LinkedIn, speaking with users, and letting their feedback guide the app.
The biggest lesson I learned was: You have to market your product long before you launch it.
I started marketing before the app was ready
Many founders wait until their product feels finished before they talk about it. Sharing early work can feel risky. You may worry that people will judge it, copy it, or ignore it.
I chose to share anyway.
Before Buildside launched, I posted about the problem I wanted to solve, why I cared about it, and what I was learning. I showed small bits of progress and asked people what they thought.
That gave people a reason to follow the journey. On launch day, I was not asking strangers to care about a new app. I was inviting people who had already watched the idea grow.
Y Combinator tells founders to release early. Its guide says waiting too long is often driven by fear and the wish to make everything perfect. An early version lets you ask, “What do you think?” That advice matched my experience.
I shared the fails as well as the wins
It is easy to post a new user count or a kind comment. It is harder to share what went wrong. Yet the honest posts often led to the best talks.
When something failed, I said so. When I changed my mind, I explained why. I shared the good days too. The goal was not to make every post look impressive. It was to show the real work.
Honesty builds trust. Buffer has shared parts of its business in public for years, through both strong and hard moments. The company says being open builds trust and keeps it accountable. Its open company page shows this in action.
People do not need a founder to look perfect. They want to know there is a real person listening and trying to make something useful.
I let users shape Buildside
Building in public was not only a way to get attention. It was a way to listen.
I replied to comments and spoke with users. I asked why they joined, what felt unclear, and what they wanted next. Then I used those answers to make Buildside better.
A simple cycle began: share the work, start a talk, learn from people, improve the app, and share the change.
Each post could bring a user. It could also bring an idea, an introduction, a partner, or a truth I had missed. That is the power of building in public. It opens doors you cannot plan for.
Stripe’s guide for founders makes a similar point: talks with possible customers can shape a better product and may later lead to sales. Its guide explains why early talks matter.
The first 130 users did not just join Buildside. They helped shape it. Their questions showed me what was missing. Their support showed me what was working.
Building in public can change your path
Building in public does not mean sharing every detail. It means letting people see enough of the journey to take part in it.
Share what you learned. Share the thing that failed. Share the small win that gave you hope. Ask a real question, then listen.
You may gain users. You may also find friends, partners, fresh ideas, and chances you never saw coming.
If you are a founder building in public, you do not have to do it alone. Join other SaaS founders, share your progress, and grow with people doing the same at Buildside.app.
