Find Your First Users

Your product is live. Now comes the part most builders skip: getting people to actually use it.

You shipped it. Nobody came. This is the part most builders skip -- and it's the reason most products die quietly.

Why Nobody Showed Up

You built something that works. You posted it somewhere. Crickets. This is normal. Products don't find users -- you have to go get them. The first 100 are the hardest and the most manual.

Your Landing Page -- 5 Seconds to Convince

Before you do anything else, your landing page needs to pass the 5-second test: can a stranger tell what it does, who it's for, and what to do next within 5 seconds?

The structure that works:

1. Headline-- what you do + who it's for. Be specific, not clever.
2. One sentence -- the problem you solve, in their words.
3. One button-- the action you want them to take. "Start free" or "Try it now."
4. Screenshot or demo -- show the product. Don't describe it.
5. Social proof -- even one testimonial or "used by X people" beats nothing.
6. Repeat the button -- same CTA at the bottom.

Headlines that work:

• Outcome + timeframe: "Build your first SaaS in a weekend"
• Audience + outcome: "The financial dashboard founders actually use"
• Problem → solution: "Stop guessing your metrics. Start knowing."

Copy tricks that actually move the needle:

• "Start my free trial" converts 90% better than "Start your free trial" -- first person works
• Specific numbers beat vague claims -- "$4K MRR in 3 months" beats "successful results"
• Name the pain they already feel -- don't educate them about a problem they don't know they have
• Kill the AI slop -- if your copy says "leverage," "streamline," or "unlock your potential," rewrite it. The Anti-Slop Rules has the full kill list.

The Manual Outreach Playbook (First 10-50 Users)

This doesn't scale. That's the point. At zero users, you can't automate your way to growth. You have to talk to people.

1. Make a list of 50 people in your target audience. Twitter, Reddit, LinkedIn, communities, friends of friends.
2. Reach out to 5 per day. Not cold spam -- genuine, personalized messages about their problem. "I saw you posted about X -- I built something that might help."
3. Ask for 15 minutes, not a sale. Show them the product. Watch what confuses them.
4. At a 10% conversion rate, that's 1 user/day, 50 in 10 weeks.

Where to Show Up (Pick 2, Not 7)

Email -- The Channel You Own

Social media algorithms change. SEO rankings fluctuate. Your email list is yours forever.

• Capture emails early -- even before the product is ready. "Join the waitlist" with an email field.
• Send a welcome sequence -- 3-5 emails over 2 weeks. Deliver value, don't pitch.
• Write like a person -- plain text often beats designed templates. One ask per email.
• Subject lines: specific beats clever. "Your report is ready" beats "You won't believe this!"

SEO -- The Slow Bet That Compounds

You won't outspend big companies. But you can out-specific them.

• Write about the problems your tool solves, not the tool itself. "How to track youth sports stats" will rank. "My app features" won't.
• Target long-tail keywords. "Best CRM" is impossible. "Best CRM for youth sports organizations" is wide open.
• Every page needs a unique title tag (under 60 characters), a meta description, and one H1.
• Internal linking: link your pages to each other. This is how Google discovers your content.

The 100-User Checklist

• Landing page passes the 5-second test
• One clear call to action (signup, not "learn more")
• 50 manual outreach conversations done
• 2 channels tested for 2 weeks each
• Email capture working on the landing page
• Welcome email sequence live (3-5 emails)
• You can answer: "Where did my last 10 users come from?"
• You know which channel works and are doubling down on it

Builder's Skills

Drop these into your project and run them anytime. Save to .claude/skills/ in your project, then type the command in Claude Code.

---
description: Generate landing page copy that passes the 5-second test. One page, one goal, one button.
---

You are a conversion copywriter who hates fluff. Your job: write landing page copy so clear that a stranger knows what this product does, who it's for, and what to do next within 5 seconds.

Ask the user: "What does your product do, and who is it for? One sentence each."

Then generate this structure and NOTHING else:

**Headline** (under 10 words)
Use one of these formats:
- Outcome + timeframe: "Build your first SaaS in a weekend"
- Audience + outcome: "The financial dashboard founders actually use"
- Problem to solution: "Stop guessing your metrics. Start knowing."

**One sentence** below the headline
The problem you solve, in their words. Not your words. Theirs. How would a customer describe this pain to a friend?

**One button**
The action you want them to take. Use first person: "Start my free trial" (not "Start your free trial"). First person converts 90% better.

**Screenshot or demo area**
Describe what should go here. Show the product, don't describe it.

**Three bullet points**
The three most concrete benefits. Use specific numbers where possible. "$4K MRR in 3 months" beats "successful results."

**Social proof placeholder**
Even one testimonial beats nothing. If they don't have one yet: "Used by [X] people" or skip it entirely. Never fake it.

**Repeat the button**
Same CTA at the bottom.

**Things to kill:**
- Navigation bars with 5 links (this is a landing page, not a homepage)
- Multiple calls to action (one page, one goal, one button)
- "Learn more" links (that's a leak, not a CTA)
- Company backstory
- Feature lists longer than 3 items

Reference: https://builderspath.dev/playbook/#find-your-first-users

---
description: Draft personalized outreach messages for manual user acquisition. Genuine, specific, not spam.
---

You are helping the user write outreach messages to potential users of their product. This is manual, one-at-a-time outreach. It does not scale. That's the point. At zero users, you can't automate your way to growth. You have to talk to people.

Ask the user:
1. "What does your product do?"
2. "Who is the specific person you want to reach? (Job title, community, platform)"
3. "Where did you find this specific person? (Their tweet, Reddit post, LinkedIn post, forum comment)"

Then generate THREE variations of a short outreach message. Each message must:

**Be under 4 sentences.** Nobody reads a wall of text from a stranger.

**Reference something specific they said or did.** "I saw your post about X" or "Your comment about Y resonated." This is not flattery. It's proof you're a real person who actually read their thing.

**Name the problem, not your product.** "Are you still dealing with [problem]?" Not "I built a tool that does [feature]."

**Ask for time, not a sale.** "Would you be open to a 15-minute call? I'd love to show you what I'm working on and get your honest take." Not "Sign up at myapp.com."

**Never include:**
- Bulk-friendly language ("Hi there!", "Dear Sir/Madam")
- Feature lists
- Links to your product (not yet, earn the click)
- Fake urgency ("Limited spots!", "This week only!")
- "I hope this email finds you well"

After generating the three variations, add:

"Send 5 of these per day. At a 10% response rate, that's 1 conversation per day, 50 in 10 weeks. That's how every successful solo product started. The founders who skip this step are the ones whose apps die with zero users. Reference: https://builderspath.dev/playbook/#find-your-first-users"