🔁 B2B SaaS: No-Code, Open-Source SaaS, Presales

Hey there, Welcome to the 430 new entrepreneurs who joined last week. Hey there, Welcome to the 430 new entrepreneurs who joined last week. to [0547E4]( for becoming a Lifetime Trends Pro Member by collecting the MetaTrends #0087 NFT. We have another up for grabs this week. 👉 To check it out, [click here](. 🔁 Let's talk about B2B SaaS. Thanks to [Rob Walling](, [Reza Saeedi](, [Stewart Townsend](, [Prabhjot Singh](, [Uwe Dreissigacker](, [Tarun Muvvala](, [Soma Mandal](, [Kimsia Sim](, [Darren Travel](, [Ben Alexander](, [Ab Advany](, [Yun](, [Niklas Nielsen]( and [Vladislav Podolyako](. We had a great time jamming on this report. ✏️ [Emin]( researched and wrote this report.[Dru]( researched and edited this report. What you'll learn: - How to presell to validate demand? - What are growth systems? - How to index into existing markets? - How to use personalization to convert leads? - How SaaS analytics can help you boost revenue? - Why narrow your target audience? - How will open-source SaaS impact B2B SaaS? - What’s feature parity? - (📈 Pro) How to build fast with no-code tools? - (📈 Pro) How to leverage product-led growth? - (📈 Pro) Why buy instead of build? - (📈 Pro) How to monetize open-source SaaS? - (📈 Pro) What are 8 examples of B2B SaaS lifetime deals that generated up to $800,000? - (📈 Pro) What is software-with-a-service? - (📈 Pro) How to reduce churn with customization? - (📈 Pro) What are 5 examples of white-label SaaS? This report is brought to you by [intent](… Are you developing a companion app for a connected device? When you partner with [intent](, you don't just work with a build team - [intent]( acts as a thought partner to guide your hardware project to success. [intent]( has 12+ years of experience in delivering stunning IoT and connected device projects including Ōura ring and McIntosh in-car sound systems. With an extensive background in mobile and web app development, firmware and hardware, we help design and build [software solutions for the world of connected devices]( - from net-new ideas, to products entering an established niche. See success stories at [( [B2B SaaS]( “The biggest competition in SaaS is a spreadsheet.” — [Ross Simmonds]( 💎 Why It Matters B2B SaaS gives you a simple, secure and accessible way to solve business problems. 🔍 Problem You can solve internal challenges: - internally by building tools and hiring - externally by outsourcing the problem Building your own tools can distract you from your core competency. 💡 Solution B2B SaaS helps you focus on your core competency. While reaping the benefits of improvements made by teams dedicated to specific problems. 🏁 Players B2B SaaS - [Make]( • Build and automate workflows - [InvoiceBerry]( • Online invoicing for small businesses - [Gusto]( • Payroll, benefits and HR management - [Hive]( • Manage tasks, workflows and team’s work - [Lanva]( • Social video editing app. - [ClickUp]( • Manage tasks, docs, chat, goals and more - [Plausible]( • Open-source privacy-friendly web analytics - [Podcast Hawk]( • Podcast guest booking software. - [Writesonic]( • AI-driven content creation - [Folderly]( • AI-Based platform to improve email deliverability. - [Craftar]( • Build APIs with No-Code - [Budibase]( • Low-code internal app builder - [LiveAgent]( • All-in-one platform for live customer support - [SavvyCal]( • Experience-focused Calendly alternative Communities - [Trends.vc]( • Community of entrepreneurs discovering new markets and ideas - [MicroConf]( • A community and event series for bootstrapped SaaS founders - [Indie Hackers]( • Real stories, advice, and revenue numbers from indie makers - [The Indiependent]( • A community for founders where you get kicked for inactivity - [MegaMaker]( • A community for bootstrappers - [100DaysOfNoCode]( • Lessons, stories and activities for no-code founders Funds - [TinySeed]( • An accelerator for bootstrapped SaaS founders - [SureSwift Capital]( • Buys and grows businesses of independent founders - [Calm Company Fund]( • Capital, mentorship and community for B2B SaaS - [Dura Software]( • Invests in hyper-niche software - [Lighter Capital]( • Invests in companies with $15,000+ MRR - [Calm Capital]( • Invests in profitable businesses - [LTV SaaS Fund]( • Focuses on profitable and privately held SaaS companies 🔮 Predictions - B2B SaaS companies will index into existing markets instead of trying to create new categories. - [Plausible]( reached [$500,000 ARR]( in 3 years with an analytics tool. - [ConvertCalculator]( has 15,000 users and [$24,000 MRR](. - [Checkout Page]( is a [side-project]( that processed $2,000,000 in payments. - [Paperform]( reached [$2,000,000 ARR](. [Tally]( reached $10,000 MRR [in less than a year]( in a crowded market of form builders. The latter has 30,000 users and sits at [$17,000 MRR](. - Companies will use [open-source SaaS]( to avoid [platform risk]( and [vendor lock-in](. - [Baserow]( • No-code database, Airtable alternative. - [Fider]( • Feedback management tool, alternative to Canny. - [Chatwoot]( • Customer engagement platform, Intercom and Zapier alternative. - Businesses will use personalization to nurture leads and convert customers at high-intent moments. [Live video sales reps]( is the second most upvoted idea on [Kernal](. - [ConvertKit]( uses surveys to change onboarding paths. - [Candu]( lets you serve different content to different users. - [Helium]( lets you talk to web visitors as they land on a page. - [Bonjoro]( lets you send transactional personal videos to your customers. - Businesses will use SaaS analytics to improve customer experiences. [Data-driven roadmaps]( and pricing will help reduce churn and maximize revenue. - [Chargebee]( allows you to run billing experiments with real-time insights. - [Chartmogul]( helps you measure, understand, and grow your recurring revenue. - [Mixpanel]( helps you convert, engage and retain users with user behavior analytics. ☁️ Opportunities - Don’t waste time, money and energy trying to create new markets. Solve existing pain points. Not those you wish existed. - [Upvoty]( • Feedback management tool, grew to [$20,000 MRR](. - [Potion]( • Notion to website converter, grew to [$4,000+ MRR](. - [Headlime]( • AI-powered marketing copy generator, grew to $20,000 MRR and was sold for [$1,000,000+]( in 8 months. - Focus on a specific [job-to-be-done](. Design simple, powerful features. - [ShareThis]( lets you add share buttons to your website. - [Hugo]( helps you manage notes and tasks for your meetings. - [SavvyCal]( is a calendar scheduling tool that generates [$20,000+ MRR](. - [Hyperping]( helps you monitor uptime and manage incidents. It has ~[$7,000 MRR]( now. - [Friendly]( offers privacy-first marketing automation and web analytics. It’s close to [$13,000 MRR]( now. - Narrow your target audience. [Vertical SaaS]( targets niche industries and customers. Niching down helps you stand out from competition, clearly communicate your value and find customers. - [The Agent Nest]( • Social media marketing for real estate that reached [$10,000 MRR](. - [Aplano]( • Employee management and time tracking for shiftworkers that reached [$450,000 ARR](. - [Zenmaid]( • Scheduling, automation and reporting for maid service that reached [$1,500,000 ARR](. - [Presell]( to validate demand. A landing page, mockup or [screenshots]( will do. Don’t waste time building something nobody wants. - [Ch Daniel]( got [$1,000]( in presales. - [Alex Pethick]( received [$4,000]( in presales for [Lanva](. - [Brian Casel]( got [$3,000]( in preorders with wireframes. - [Aazar Shad]( reached [$560 MRR]( with [Ecomply]( after 3 webinars. - [Danny Postma]( got [$16,000]( in presales in 48 hours for [Headlime](. - [Kalo Yankulov]( says [Encharge]( got ~[$4,000]( in pre-sales with content marketing. 🏔️ Risks - Feature parity • No-code and low-code tools make it easier to reach feature parity. This is a two-way problem. It increases [competitor risk](. You can catch up with competitors. They can also catch up to you. Competition lowers margins. - Low Lifetime Value • This makes it hard to invest in customer acquisition. Paired with other expenses it can lead to negative cash flow and the [Valley of Death](. - Platform Risk • Building on other platforms subjects you to their product roadmap, outages and fees. Changes to Notion API [broke Super](. 🔑 Key Lessons - [Micro-SaaS]( does not mean low revenue. “Micro” means a specific niche, target audience or set of features. [Hubstaff]( started as a time tracker for field and remote teams. It grew to 75,000 users and [$3,800,000 ARR](. - Growth systems > growth hacks. Growth hacks are designed for fast, low-cost user acquisition. [Growth systems]( focus on long-term marketing strategies. [Doopoll]( grew MRR by [800%]( over 6 months with a growth system using pain point SEO. 🔥 Hot Takes - The largest SaaS categories will be commoditized by [Monetized Open-Source]( alternatives. [Rocket.Chat]( and [n8n]( are open-source alternatives to Intercom and Zapier. This is [counter-positioning](. It’s unlikely the latter will open source. - You need lots of customers, a high customer lifetime value or both to build a great B2B SaaS business. A company without one of these is in a death zone. - Feature parity is a weakness of SaaS. This leads to [commoditization]( and lower margins. Low prices and complementary services become your key differentiators. 😠Haters “Markets are crowded. How do I stand out?” There’s a [marketing strategy]( for every taste. [AJ]( from [Carrd]( [says]( a massive market has room for many solutions. [Canny]( got to [$1,000,000 ARR]( in the crowded market of user feedback management. [Ruth and Eric]( built and grew [Reconvert]( to [$120,000 MRR](, competing with 750+ Shopify cross-sell and up-sell [apps](. “Sales will always have a place in B2B SaaS. Self-serve does not always work.” You’re right. Especially when selling to governments and large organizations such as hospitals. Self-serve, product-led models are increasingly effective with high lifetime value customers. “Lifetime deals seem risky. What if I shut the product down?” Lifetime refers to the lifetime of your product, not your lifetime. It’s more like a “pay-once-and-use-forever” deal. Despite [associated risks](, some SaaS companies choose lifetime deals over subscriptions. [Infinity]( ran a lifetime deal before official launch and [decided to keep]( their pricing that way forever. “Using open-source tools means self-hosting and taking on other responsibilities.”There’s no free lunch. That’s the price of agency. Open source alternatives often offer hosted versions as well. 🔗 Links - [Who should we talk to about B2B SaaS?]( • The tweet behind this report. - [The Stair Step Approach to Bootstrapping]( • A model from Rob Walling on increasing the odds of success by “stair stepping.” - [B2B SaaS Marketing Guide]( • SaaS-centric marketing guide. 📈 What else? [Trends PRO #0088 — B2B SaaS]( has more insights. What you’ll get: - 36 B2B SaaS Examples (157% More) - 23 Communities (283% More) - 23 B2B SaaS Funds (228% More) - 15 Predictions (275% More) - 16 Opportunities (300% More) - 6 Risks (100% More) - 4 Key Lessons (100% More) - 6 Hot Takes (100% More) - 15 Links (400% More) With Trends Pro you’ll learn: - (📈 Pro) How to build fast with no-code tools? - (📈 Pro) How to leverage product-led growth? - (📈 Pro) Why buy instead of build? - (📈 Pro) How to monetize open-source SaaS? - (📈 Pro) What’s the difference between passive and active SaaS? - (📈 Pro) What are 8 examples of B2B SaaS lifetime deals that generated up to $800,000? - (📈 Pro) What is software-with-a-service? - (📈 Pro) How to hyper niche? - (📈 Pro) How to add value with APIs and integrations? - (📈 Pro) Where to buy SaaS apps? - (📈 Pro) How to reduce churn with customization? - (📈 Pro) What are 5 examples of white-label SaaS? - (📈 Pro) Why build your SaaS in public? - (📈 Pro) How to leverage existing ecosystems to grow your SaaS? - (📈 Pro) And much more… Unlock Trends Pro ✅ Access All Trends Pro Reports ✅ Stay Accountable with Daily Standups ✅ Meet Curious Entrepreneurs in Weekly Meetups ✅ Discuss Reports with Domain Experts ✅ Collaborate on Upcoming Reports [Become A Trends Pro Member]( To sign up for Trends Pro, [click here](. 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