xeniqu

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Solo dev building my first SaaS in public

Shipping to App Store & Google Play right now
Gym girl • artist • lived in 8 countries

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

I’m Xena.
Indie hacker, IT engineer, and artist.

I build SaaS products that actually useful.
Here I share my raw thoughts and document my journey.

I’ve got something to say.

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

BTW Rekko: https://t.co/Ic7Jkko2Re

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

Situation: I set up my first Apple Ads campaign for Rekko, but before launching it I checked the analytics and discovered that 80% of users drop off at the registration stage without even reaching onboarding.

Claude and I decided to make the initial registration anonymous and only offer full registration after the user is engaged.

But I still haven't launched the distribution again.

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

@jtkeepsmore Thank you, I'm really glad to hear that

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

I’m Xena.
Indie hacker, IT engineer, and artist.

I build SaaS products that actually useful.
Here I share my raw thoughts and document my journey.

I’ve got something to say.

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

@Lillaevoo Thanks!

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

$0 MRR is making me so dramatic

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

Despite my whole life philosophy of never whining or getting discouraged, I have to honestly admit that it’s really not easy for me right now.

I’m in that inevitable stretch of the journey where nobody knows who you are, your products haven’t found their users yet, and you have zero guarantees. It’s like crossing a desert, the kind of thing that breaks 98% of people.

Maybe I’ll be one of those who don’t make it either, but I don’t think so.

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

@Prathkum Mid engineers still aren't tired yet

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

Honest observation: it's easier to start 5 new projects than to actually ship one.
And it's easier to ship 5 projects than to start distributing even one.

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

Although right now I'm not watching series, I'm watching videos about puppy care and training for my future dog, but still...

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

Closed testing on Google Play acts like a temporary trap.

For those two weeks, it feels like you're still actively progressing toward your goal, even though you're only spending 15 minutes a day on it and watching series the rest of the time.

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

Looks like I'm losing my edge a bit, I'm only managing to ship one app a month now.

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

My previous experience naming a product for beauty masters — Rekko — now feels more negative than positive to me, even though I haven’t even started distributing it yet.

So I’ve decided to switch my naming strategy to: boring but precise.

I went ahead and bought the domains https://t.co/WF8mOo0lxy and https://t.co/kBh0zosBHb.

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

The problem I run into more often than I’d like when building products is naming.

It’s genuinely a tough creative challenge because you need to find a name that’s memorable, perfectly matches what your product does, has no unwanted associations, is easy to read and pronounce, doesn’t have existing competitors in the niche, and has an available domain.

In reality, meeting all those conditions at once is almost impossible. I ended up spending several days just trying to come up with names for my products for trainers and groomers.

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

To be honest, development isn’t super active at the moment because I’ve decided to replay Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, and I’m also actively working on getting my driver’s license

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

So, here’s where we stand right now:
We have two paid apps, one of them a SaaS, already published on the App Store and currently going through closed beta testing on Google Play.

As soon as they’re fully published on Google Play, I’ll start distributing them.

We also have two more SaaS products for trainers and groomers in active development.

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

In recent weeks, I’ve been dreaming more and more about getting a dog. It seems I’ve already made up my mind that in a couple of months I’ll buy myself a puppy.

In honor of this, I decided to sketch out a SaaS idea for dog groomers while Fable 5 is still available on subscription.

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

@Prathkum I would never have thought that Claude’s limits would push me toward self-development and hobbies

[xeniqu @xeniqu_workshop]

I’m so glad that Fable 5 is back