What's New: Need new SaaS ideas?

(from the latest issue of the Indie Hackers newsletter)

Need a new SaaS idea?

• Here are 20 things you can build with ChatGPT vision, including an insurance evaluator, a workout planner, and a roadside assistance tool.
• If you're looking to grow your social media following, make sure your posts promote shareability, foster engagement, and leverage past data.
• The clock is ticking for Alexander Chen, who gave himself one year of indie hacking to make it work. Going to nice coffee shops has helped.

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What Can You Build With ChatGPT Vision? 👀

by Darko

Less than a month ago, ChatGPT released ChatGPT vision. Basically, you can upload an image, and it can answer questions about that image.

There's not yet an API for this feature. We've all seen the number of apps based on OpenAI's GPT-4 API. Some of the winners were folks who were the first to make use of that API. Things will probably be the same with GPT-4 vision.

Let's explore some of the things that are possible!

Code a user interface

You can upload an actual picture of a user interface, and get GPT to output the code for it.

Build: A "reverse UI" decoder tool. You can charge people to upload their own designs, and convert those designs to HTML.

Homework

Upload an image from a textbook, and GPT will solve the problem. Build a tool around this.

Help accountants

You can upload an image of a receipt and get a bunch of information in return.

Build: An offline document organizer for accountants. You can customize this to Shopify or QuickBooks, and build it as an extension to the platform.

Expense tracker

Build: Imagine a camera taking a picture of a restaurant, then asking GPT to calculate total expenses for the day based on table count, number of customers, etc.

Reverse recipe creator

GPT is good at taking a picture of food, then telling you how to make that food.

Build: A "reverse recipe" creator where people can upload their favorite dish and get the recipe.

Workout planner

Upload an image of the gym equipment you have for GPT to tell you which exercises to focus on.

Build: A scrappy workout planner that uses simple things people have in their homes.

DALL-E or MidJourney prompt

You can upload an image to GPT and ask it to create a DALL-E or Midjourney prompt from it:

Build: A reverse prompt tool where people upload images and get prompts in return. You can then process those prompts and compare them to the final image.

Travel helper

GPT can accurately answer questions like these:

Build: A travel app where people can take a picture of what they're seeing. As an output, they'll get a detailed description of the object, alongside similar objects.

Live road assistance

GPT can do a good job of recognizing the conditions of the road:

Build: An app that connects to someone's dash cam and periodically analyzes the image for any conditions they need to be aware of.

Create content from graphs

You can take pictures that feature stats, and convert them to useful answers and insights:

Build: An insights generator. Get people to choose a niche. Your tool will then search for stats for that niche, feed them into GPT, and ask it to generate some unique insights.

Check out the other 10 ideas here!

Discuss this story.

In the News 📰

from the Growth Trends newsletter

🔎 TikTok shares ad insights and tips in its new video series.

🍎 Apple Pay Later is no longer in beta.

💲 Get $100 off an In the News section ad with code MINUS100.

💻 GA4 has a steep learning curve, but its pros outweigh the cons.

🎁 Holiday content for promoting local businesses.

😈 The GitHub black market: How coders are cheating.

Check out Growth Trends for more curated news items focused on user acquisition and new product ideas.

Growing Your Social Media Following 📱

by Thomas Griffin

If you've been struggling to grow your followers on social media, here are a few tips that may help!

Be active on relevant platforms

The first step to ensuring the growth of your followers on social media is being active on platforms preferred by your target audience.

Have a strong brand identity

You are not the only one trying to engage your target audience through different social media channels. Your competitors are active there, as well. So, stand out by building a strong brand identity.

Your brand identity tells your audience what you stand for, and the values you believe in. Your brand identity should inspire your target audience.

Share relevant content

People don't just use social media to interact with their social circles. Social media platforms serve diverse use cases, one of which is giving users access to relevant information to make informed decisions.

Make sure your content is fresh and relevant. This helps you attract and build trust with your target audience, and capture quality leads.

Foster engagement

It's important that you interact with your followers to foster engagement and build a community around your brand.

Try not to make it a one-sided conversation. Pay heed to what your followers are saying. Let them know that their voice is heard by responding to their comments.

This encourages genuine discussion, which can fuel your reach and help you attract more followers.

Promote shareability

Make sure the content you post offers value to your target audience, and is tailored to their preferences. This leads to your followers sharing your posts on their timelines, and in different online communities.

Streamline your content to make it easy to share. Make sure the design promotes sharing on your chosen platform. For instance, Instagram posts need to be sized in a certain way. Ensure your content meets any requirements.

Be consistent

Each social media platform has different dynamics and algorithms, but they all favor content quality and consistency. However, don't go to the other extreme and flood the feeds of your followers.

Use hashtags

Create content around trending hashtags, or create brand-specific hashtags to generate awareness.

But don't go overboard: Well thought-out use of hashtags may amplify your reach, but it can also backfire if you're careless.

Leverage past data

Note which of your previous posts performed well and helped you generate traction. Factors like reach, reactions, shares, and comments can give you a general idea.

Use that insight to improve your content strategy.

Discuss this story.

Landing Page Hot Tips 🔥

from the One Page Love newsletter

Strengthen your landing page with these design, development, and conversion tips:

Add a hint to get people to scroll. Here are four ways to do this:

1. Add a subtle down arrow, positioned at the bottom of the introduction.

2. Add a "Learn More" CTA button that kicks off the page scroll.

3. Avoid a 100% window height introduction section, bringing the second section up.

4. Allow the hero elements to flow into the second section, suggesting storytelling.

Subscribe to Rob Hope's One Page Love newsletter for his favorite UI, design, and development finds.

One Year of Indie Hacking: The Countdown 🗓

by James Fleischmann

Alexander Chen, founder of TypeChinese and 1000 Pound Club, quit his job, moved to Taiwan, and gave himself one year of indie hacking before he has to get a full-time job.

High pay, high depression

Alexander got a high-paying job after college, but he didn't feel passionate about it. In fact, he was depressed.

He had moved to NYC during COVID-19. He had no friends in the city, no in-person coworkers, and few chances to meet people. He felt defeated.

But once he broke his routines, everything changed. He started exploring and trying new things. He got outside and made friends through rock climbing, kayaking, and running.

Quitting his job

Alexander quit his job before starting his indie hacking journey, since building while working a full-time job left him without enough time or energy.

Currently, he's working on TypeChinese full-time, despite it being pre-revenue.

Here are the numbers:

• Revenue: $0 per month.
• Founder pay: $0 per month.
• Freelance income: $500-$1K per month.
• Personal account: $45K.
• Business account: $20K.

Personal expenses:

• Rent: $500 per month.
• Entertainment: $500 per month.
• Food: $400 per month.
• Utilities: $75 per month.
• Transportation: $40 per month.
• Misc: $50 per month.
• Total: $1565 per month.

Business expenses:

• Total: $0.

Alexander says that, if he lives minimally, he can live for around two years in Taipei. And that's with travel built in. Despite his runway, he's only giving it a year. VC funding is an option for Alexander, but for now, he's opting for ownership and freedom.

Investments

Alexander invests in stocks, mostly ETFs. Another investment he's happy to make is going to nice coffee shops. Because he struggles to be productive at home, he gets his best work done at coffee shops.

What's a "nice" coffee shop? To him, it's one where the barista actually puts a lot of care into each cup, and the interior of the shop is comfy. He goes to these twice a week. The rest of the time, he goes to the “pretty good” coffee shops.

Sometimes, he even goes to multiple coffee shops in a day because he likes changing his environment.

Saving

Alexander doesn't budget every dollar. Instead, he has multiple "backup reserves" in case things go wrong.

He has an Ally high-yield savings account that he uses for the lion's share of his cash storage, as well as his emergency fund. He says the high interest rate helps him stay ahead of inflation!

Discuss this story.

The Tweetmaster's Pick 🐦

by Tweetmaster Flex

I post the tweets indie hackers share the most. Here's today's pick:

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Also, you can submit a section for us to include in a future newsletter.

Special thanks to Jay Avery for editing this issue, to Gabriella Federico for the illustrations, and to Darko, Thomas Griffin, Rob Hope, and James Fleischmann for contributing posts. —Channing