firstthousandusers
  1. Idea and validation
  2. Waitlist
  3. Private beta
  4. Launch
  5. First 100 users
  6. First 1,000 users
Communities

Answer questions where they are asked

Search communities and Q&A sites for people describing the problem, and give a useful answer that mentions the product only where it helps.

What's required20–30 minutes a day, most of it writing answers.
Accounts
Reddit, Hacker News, Quora or Stack Overflow, whichever your users use. A free F5Bot account and Google Alerts.
Assets
A list of 10–20 phrases people use to describe the problem, and one page on your site that explains the product.
Time
20–30 minutes a day, most of it writing answers.
Cost
Free.
Prerequisites
Enough knowledge of the problem to answer without mentioning the product at all.

What to do

  1. Write down the exact words people use for the problem. Not your category name, their complaint. For a scheduling tool that is “how do I stop clients no-showing” or “calendly alternative for teams”, not “appointment management software”. Collect 10–20 phrases from threads you have already read (see find where users talk), including competitor names plus “alternative”, “vs” and “not working”.
  2. Set up keyword alerts so threads come to you. Checking ten sites by hand every day does not last. Set up:
    • F5Bot (free) for Reddit, Hacker News and Lobsters. It emails you when a keyword appears in a post or comment.
    • Google Alerts for each phrase in quotes, set to “as it happens” or daily.
    • Saved searches on X for the phrase plus a question word, for example "calendly alternative" ? or "anyone know a tool" invoicing.
  3. Answer the old threads that rank in Google first. Search Google for your phrase site:reddit.com, site:quora.com and site:stackoverflow.com. Threads on the first page keep getting visitors for years. A good answer there, even on a thread that is two years old, keeps sending people long after a fresh post has scrolled away. Check each subreddit’s rules first; some lock or archive old threads.
  4. Answer the question fully before you mention anything. Explain how to solve it with free tools or by hand. Give the steps, the gotcha, a number from your own experience. If the answer is useful without your product, you have earned the right to add one line at the end.
  5. Disclose that you are the founder, every time. “Disclosure: I’m building [Product], which does this automatically” is honest, and on most communities it gets a better reaction than a hidden plug. Undisclosed self-promotion gets downvoted, reported and sometimes banned.
  6. Link only when it directly answers the question. If someone asks for a tool, link it. If they ask how to do something, answer, and mention the product without a link or with one link at the end. Many subreddits remove posts with links from new accounts; read the sidebar or wiki before you post.
  7. Reply fast to fresh threads. On Reddit and Hacker News, the first good answer in the first hour or two gets most of the votes and views. That is what the alerts are for.
  8. Turn your best answers into blog posts. When an answer gets upvotes or follow-up questions, expand it into a page on your own site with the same question as the title. You already know people ask it and what a good answer looks like. See SEO for early-stage products.

If you are starting from zero

A brand-new Reddit or Stack Overflow account with no history looks like a spammer, and many communities filter new accounts automatically.

  • Spend the first one to two weeks answering questions with no mention of your product at all. Pick threads where you genuinely know the answer.
  • Build some karma or reputation in the two or three communities where your users are, not everywhere.
  • Fill in your profile: your name, “founder of [Product]” and a link. People who like an answer click the profile, so the profile can do the promotion for you.
  • On Quora and Stack Overflow, answers with a short, direct first sentence and concrete steps tend to get picked and upvoted.

Why it works

The person asking has the problem right now and is looking for a solution. You do not need to create demand, only show up when it appears. A helpful answer from the person who built a tool feels like advice, not an ad, and old threads that rank in Google keep showing that answer to new people for years.

How it gets users

Slowly, then steadily. One good answer usually brings a few visits and sometimes a signup or two. A single answer on a thread that ranks in Google can bring a small trickle of users every week for a long time. Most founders who do this for a month or two get their first 10–30 users from it, and a clear picture of how people describe the problem, which improves everything else you write.

Common mistakes

  • Dropping a link with a one-line answer. It gets removed or downvoted.
  • Hiding that you built the product.
  • Posting the same copy-pasted answer across many threads.
  • Only answering fresh threads and ignoring old ones that rank in Google.
  • Starting with a new account and posting links on day one.
  • Answering questions the product does not really solve.

Next steps

This guide is connected to these guides on the map. Numbered ones come next; faded ones come before it.

01 Idea02 Waitlist03 Beta04 Launch05 First 10006 First 1kFind where your users already talkSEO for early-stage products1Write honest comparison pages2This guide
  1. 106 First 1,000 users · Content and SEOSEO for early-stage productsWrite a small number of pages that answer specific problem searches your users make, instead of competing for broad terms.
  2. 206 First 1,000 users · Content and SEOWrite honest comparison pagesPublish "alternative to" and comparison pages for tools your users already consider, with accurate tables and clear trade-offs.