Uptime app pivot

Hi everyone!

This is my second post here. Around 2–3 weeks ago, I published my first product on IndieHackers. I experimented with Google Ads, but some keywords turned out to be too expensive, while others didn’t generate enough views to convert into customers.

I decided to pivot my application. Initially, I started building it as an OpsGenie clone. It’s almost finished, but reaching new clients has been difficult. I know that building an application is a long-term process, but I’m not an influencer and I haven’t yet found a good strategy to attract users.

My target audience was DevOps teams and startups, usually companies with at least 5+ employees. The problem is that many companies don’t need this type of solution or don’t use on-call systems. Talking to larger companies (50+) is not possible at the moment — new product, no brand, and hiring salespeople is too expensive.

So I pivoted and simplified the app. I’m now building a website uptime and monitoring tool. When an application goes down, users receive an alert. There are many similar solutions on the market, but my main goal is to learn how to build a product together with real users. It’s easier to get 10 users for an uptime tool than for an OpsGenie clone. An on-call tool requires complex onboarding, a lot of configuration, and training multiple team members.

The uptime market is bigger. I can create a solution for almost any website, and I’d also like to target API-based products. Potential users don’t need onboarding or demos — they just fill in a few fields and they’re done.

For now, earnings are not important. Learning and gaining experience are. I want to learn how to talk to potential customers and how to promote my application. Maybe in the future I’ll expand it, add new features, and grow my MRR.