How to Find Your First 10 SaaS Customers Without Paid Ads
Learn how to get your first 10 SaaS customers without paid ads using customer research, Reddit, online communities, and organic distribution.
Bhargab KalitaFounder of Xoru··7 min read
Getting your first 10 SaaS customers is one of the hardest parts of building a software business.
You have built a product, launched your website, and perhaps shared it on social media. But the sign-ups are slow, conversations are limited, and potential customers are not arriving as expected.
The obvious solution seems to be paid advertising. However, spending money on ads before understanding your ideal customer can be expensive.
The good news is that you can find your first customers without a large marketing budget.
The key is to stop waiting for customers to discover your product and start finding people who are already discussing the problems your product solves.
Here are seven practical ways to do that.
1. Define the Problem Your Product Solves
Before looking for customers, get specific about the problem you solve.
Avoid describing your product only in terms of its features.
For example, instead of saying:
"We have an AI-powered marketing platform."
Explain the problem:
"We help SaaS founders discover online conversations where potential customers are looking for solutions like theirs."
The second statement identifies a specific audience, a problem, and a potential outcome.
To define your ideal customer, answer these questions:
Who experiences the problem most frequently?
What are they currently doing to solve it?
Where do they discuss the problem?
What makes existing solutions frustrating?
What would motivate them to try a new solution?
Your answers will help you identify the people most likely to become your first customers.
2. Find People Already Looking for a Solution
One of the most effective early-stage acquisition strategies is to find people who are already expressing a need for your product.
Think about the difference between these two audiences.
Audience A: People who might eventually need your product.
Audience B: People actively asking for recommendations, comparing alternatives, or explaining a problem your product solves.
Audience B gives you a stronger starting point because there is evidence of a current need.
For example, a founder building project management software could look for conversations such as:
"What's a good alternative to Trello for small teams?"
"I'm struggling to manage client projects across multiple tools."
"Can anyone recommend an affordable project management platform?"
These conversations can reveal potential customers, the language they use, and the limitations of existing solutions.
Explore relevant discussions on Reddit, X, Hacker News, LinkedIn, and other communities where your target audience participates.
The objective is not to message everyone. It is to identify relevant conversations and understand the people behind them.
3. Participate in Communities Before Promoting Your Product
Online communities can be valuable sources of early customers, but only when you approach them correctly.
People generally join communities to exchange ideas, solve problems, and learn from others. They do not necessarily want to see another promotional post.
Start by observing discussions in communities relevant to your product.
Look for recurring questions, common frustrations, and requests for recommendations.
When you find a relevant discussion, provide a useful answer.
For example, if someone asks how to find customers for a new SaaS product, explain a practical acquisition method instead of immediately pitching your software.
If your product genuinely helps with the problem, mention it when appropriate and permitted by the community's rules.
Lead with value, not a sales pitch.
A useful contribution can start a conversation, establish credibility, and give interested people a reason to learn more about your product.
4. Use Competitor Research to Discover Customer Needs
Your competitors' customers can help you understand your market.
Look for public discussions in which people compare tools, ask for alternatives, or explain why an existing product does not meet their needs.
Pay attention to phrases such as:
"I'm looking for an alternative to..."
"Does anyone know a tool that can..."
"I wish this software had..."
"This platform is too expensive for..."
"What's the best tool for..."
These discussions can reveal opportunities that are not obvious from competitor websites.
For instance, people may be looking for a simpler interface, more affordable pricing, better integrations, or a feature that existing products lack.
Use these insights to improve your positioning and identify prospects who may benefit from your solution.
However, do not assume that everyone who complains about a competitor is ready to switch. Understand their needs before approaching them.
5. Build a Simple, Repeatable Outreach Process
Once you identify potential customers, you need a consistent way to start conversations.
A practical workflow looks like this:
Find a relevant public conversation.
Check whether the person fits your ideal customer profile.
Understand the problem they are describing.
Provide a useful response where appropriate.
Reach out personally if there is a legitimate reason and the platform permits it.
Offer a relevant next step, such as a product walkthrough or trial.
Follow up respectfully if they express interest.
Avoid sending the same generic message to hundreds of people.
Instead, reference the specific problem that made you reach out.
For example:
"Hey, I noticed your discussion about finding relevant conversations for your SaaS. We're building a tool that helps founders discover potential customers discussing related problems across platforms like Reddit and X. Would you be open to trying it?"
This approach is more relevant than an unsolicited message that simply asks someone to purchase your product.
6. Offer Hands-On Onboarding to Your First Customers
Early customers are not just a source of revenue. They can help you discover what your product needs to become.
Consider offering hands-on onboarding to a small number of suitable prospects.
Help them configure the product, understand its features, and achieve an initial result.
During onboarding, ask questions such as:
What made you interested in trying this product?
What were you doing before?
What is confusing or difficult to use?
Which feature provides the most value?
What would make you willing to pay for it?
Use their feedback to improve the product and onboarding experience.
If customers achieve meaningful results, ask whether they would be comfortable sharing a testimonial or allowing you to document their experience.
Do not invent testimonials, customer numbers, or results. Real feedback builds credibility that fabricated claims cannot provide.
7. Track What Actually Produces Customers
Finding your first customers requires experimentation, but experimentation should produce useful information.
Track a few basic metrics:
Metric
What It Tells You
Relevant conversations found
Whether you are reaching the right places
Qualified prospects identified
Whether the audience fits your target market
Meaningful conversations started
Whether your approach generates interest
Product trials or demos
Whether prospects want to explore the solution
Paying customers
Whether your process generates revenue
Customer feedback
How to improve your product and positioning
You do not need an elaborate analytics system at the beginning.
A spreadsheet is enough to record prospects, conversations, follow-ups, and outcomes.
After a few weeks, review which channels and approaches produce the most qualified conversations.
Then invest more time in what works.
How Xoru Helps You Find Potential Customers
Manually searching multiple platforms for relevant discussions can consume hours every week.
You need to find the right conversations, understand their context, evaluate whether they represent potential opportunities, and decide how to respond.
Xoru helps SaaS founders discover relevant conversations across platforms such as Reddit, X, Hacker News, and other online communities.
Instead of relying entirely on people discovering your website, you can use Xoru to identify discussions related to your product and explore opportunities to engage with potential customers.
A practical workflow is:
Define the type of customer you want to reach.
Discover conversations related to their problems.
Evaluate which discussions are relevant to your product.
Participate with useful, contextual responses.
Track promising opportunities and continue the conversation.
Xoru is not a substitute for understanding your customers or building a product people want. It can help make conversation discovery and prospect research more systematic.
Explore Xoru to learn how it can fit into your customer acquisition workflow.
Final Thoughts
Your first 10 SaaS customers are unlikely to arrive simply because you launched a website.
You need to identify a specific audience, understand their problems, find where they discuss those problems, and offer something genuinely useful.
Start small. Focus on relevant conversations instead of vanity metrics. Speak directly with potential customers and learn from every interaction.
You do not need thousands of followers to find your first customers.
You need to find the right people, understand their needs, and give them a compelling reason to try your product.
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