Launched My SaaS and Its Crickets. What’s Wrong!? - A Case Study
So you’ve built your SaaS. Congrats! But wait, where are all the users?
I recently analyzed a form-builder SaaS (think Typeform alternative) that looked pretty sleek on the outside but had sneaky issues lurking that were stopping users from even clicking “Try now for FREE”
I mean, if you’re failing to get FREE users it’s pretty disheartening.
So, I made a full fledged 20+ pages report doing a House MD style Differential Diagnosis (think messaging, positioning, landing page, conversion points bla bla bla)
I distilled it down to mistakes you need to avoid so your users don’t avoid you.
If you are a genuine founder who wants to post real MRR screenshots, you will want to read the whole report. It’s at the VERY END.
But let’s start with the distilled version!
1. Vague AF Messaging and Positioning
Tech founders feel like if they throw “Powered by AI” at our faces, we’re gonna open our wallets and whisper “take it away”
But their dreams get crushed on their launch day.
The form builder said “Powered by AI” and “Have conversations with leads” which honestly had me nowhere. You’re a form builder but are you a DM SaaS too? And why would I get you if I can make unlimited forms already with Tally?
That’s the number one issue most SaaS founders have. They build something in the adrenaline rush of coding but don’t know
- Who are they helping?
- How is it different from what they are already using?
- Whatever your “difference” is — is it ‘Must to have’ or ‘Nice to have’
Ponder on these questions before you go LIVE on the launch day.
And ideally, ponder on these even before you start building.
2. Jargon filled Landing Page
I swear I never want to add this to my list but it never fails to make an appearance.
The landing page said…
“Intelligent Forms, Smarter Conversations. AI-powered forms designed to communicate effectively in a natural language”
As a potential user who website hopped on this landing page, my brain instantly went
- What are Intelligent forms?
- Why do I need Intelligent forms?
- What are smarter conversations?
- How is AI powering my forms? Ohhh maybe it is changing questions based on responses?
- What do you mean by natural language.
And if I don’t understand what you do in the first 5 seconds, I'm gonna bounce.
You need to understand as a founder, that everyone is opening your website with 24 email notifications, traffic in the background, thinking about the asshole boss they’re gonna deal with, or what they want to eat for dinner.
They have very few brain cells to decide whether they want to check out what you made or not. And you need to appease those brain cells.
So,
- Let go of the jargon
- In the simplest language tell them what you do
- And how what you do, will help them
Let me try reframing the paragraph
“Stop boring your customers with corporate-y forms.
Use intuitive forms that feel like you’re chatting with a friend.
Powered by AI”
And maybe sprinkle “Increases response rates by 65%”
This shows
- How it will change your customer’s life -> Since the target audience of this SaaS is founders and other businesses
- How it will change your life -> Increasing response rates
3. Onboarding Flow from Hell
Okay so, you’ve now convinced me to check out your SaaS. I log in through google and woah, there are 11 questions I need to answer.
Look, I am already procrastinating my rent and dinner, and I took my last 3 brain cells to decide to TRY YOU and you effing start a FBI investigation on me?
When I tried the app, I got questions like
- Where did you hear about us
- What will you use us for
- How many team members do you have
After the first 2 questions, I was still hopeful that maybe they would personalize the SaaS for me according to how I answer my questions
But as I moved forward, the questions were so founder-centric that I hated it. It was clear that it was FOR THEM to get information on me and not me
And that’s not a good look at your business in the first 2 minutes!
You’ve already pissed me off.
Oh and there was no SKIP BUTTON!!!!
So, if you do want an onboarding flow
- Show them the number of questions you’re gonna ask (NOT MORE THAN 5)
- Tell them why you are asking them
- It should not be for you but for them. You should only be asking questions if you can personalize emails or your software experience accordingly
- Show a goddamn skip option
With a bad onboarding flow, you have already reduced the patience of your customer.
They’re gonna be like a hangry girlfriend when they start trying out your software.
4. The Pricing Chaos
The business that I analyzed had FREE plans for about 25 “conversations” which I am assuming means 25 form fillers
And the next plan at $49 — for 25 to 250 conversations. Now there are a couple of psychological problems here
- Free plan -> $49/month. That’s not a step, it’s a cliff. You can’t make them jump a cliff when they are happily strolling in the garden. Result: Users stick to free forever. You eat ramen forever.
- If a small business tries you, and fills their 25 quotas, they’re gonna be like “Hmmm, I don’t think I’ll ever have 250 lead form fillers this soon, and I don’t want to pay $49 for something that is not going to happen” and boom, you lost some MRR.
- Since you are only giving them 25 lead form fillers, are they enough to make them get used to your app, and then pay for it?
For pricing, you should always have a tiered pricing. I’d add a mid $19 pricing here.
Next, think about
- How are FREE users going to convert to paid users? Am I giving them enough incentive? Will they like me SO MUCH in the FREE plan that they will pay?
- How to stop freemium forever gang so I don’t have to eat ramen all my life?
- Would my target audience pay this price instantly to receive what I am giving? The pricing decisions people take is instantaneous. So it should make sense.
5. The “Me Too” Syndrome
We’re all tired of AI alternatives everywhere. Any user could come and think “Just another Typeform clone with an AI sticker. Why the hell should I switch?”
Typeform is pricey so you could compete on price. But Tally already does so and gives unlimited form fillers. So why would someone pick this saas?
That’s why you need a
- Unique pain
- Unique angle
- Ideally “Must have” solutions
I saw that in the UI of the app, there were different templates of forms like “Inbound Leads” “Outbound Leads” and “feedback from users”
And if it were me, I would take one of them and position my form builder for that.
Example -
“Customers don’t wanna give feedback because it feels like a lot of work. Filling out forms and surveys.
With ABC, you can get feedback from them like a friend. No corporate forms, no 17 min long surveys. Just a chat window on the side, talking like a friend at a bar, about life and SaaS”
This creates a picture of something different and gives them a direct benefit.
So, Focus on ONE use case to start.
Are you trying to be everything to everyone? You’ll end up being nothing to no one.
And that’s it.
Lemme just do a quick TLDR
- Refine your messaging and positioning. In 3 seconds, I should know why I should use you?
- Dump your techy, jargony language in the dustbin. Don’t try to look cool using heavy words. Use simple words that they’ll understand if they wake up from coma.
- Don’t ask 16 onboarding questions. If you do wanna ask, give a skip option, tell them how many questions are left, and make sure you use their answers for THEM and not just you and your marketing.
- Don’t make your pricing a cliff. Make it tiered. Think about it from a customer who wants to pinch pennies. How do you persuade them?
- Don’t make another AI alternative unless you’re very clear what you bring to the table. And if you do, try to focus on one use case.
With this, it’s a WRAP.
If you want to read the full report, you can check it out here
It looks something like this!
https://vimeo.com/995312694?share=copy
(and if you want you can sign up as well, so you receive this analysis and reports directly in your inbox. I'm not interested in spamming you because god forbid I already am dying with the content schedules I have)
If you want me to do a Differential Diagnosis of your biz, comment here and I’ll send you a link (I’m doing 10 for FREE, and already done one. So, 9 seats left :))
Hope this helps you!
Cheers.
