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Yes, why not. Do it. Here are some suggestions: 1. Put up a landing page asap explaining what commento does. Add 2 Call-to-Action buttons on it. One for "Downl
by codegeek 9y ago
Yes, why not. Do it. Here are some suggestions:
1. Put up a landing page asap explaining what commento does. Add 2 Call-to-Action buttons on it. One for "Download Free" which should take them to the github page. Second for "Host it for me" where take them to a signup page and get their credit card but offer a FREE trial for 7-30 days (you can experiment with this). Regardless of whether self hosted or saas, collect email address from everyone.
2. Show a simple table on the landing page explaining the difference between self hosted and SAAS versions including feature differences. Remember that there will be 2 types of audience that you are targeting. One: developers who don't mind self hosting vs the second: non technical bloggers etc who just want a simple commenting system.
3. Have a subscribe form somewhere that is not too intrusive. Manage your email list using this but don't spam please.
4. Start writing blog posts on topics related to the pain points with comments including competitor's horror stories. Don't directly attack them but show why you are better.
5. Go on twitter and type "disqus sucks" or "I hate disqus" etc. From the results, talk to those people and ask them if they are willing to try your free service.
6. Google "disqus alternatives" and visit the top 10 articles that show up. See if there are any discussions on those articles that you can leverage. Find some adopters from there as well.
7. Listen to your users carefully. But don't worry about haters. Ignore them. Only focus on constructive criticism and feedback.
8. Get product hunted if you can (I never really cared about this but heard this can give you a temporary traffic spike)
Don't forget. You built something cool. But to turn it into a SAAS, you will have to do a lot more including the steps I mentioned to turn it into something sustainable and worth. You built it but they won't come unless you make an effort.