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My personal opinion: for any project in which you’re the sole resource (engineer, product manager, subject matter expert, UX, QA, etc. etc.), if you want to be

My personal opinion: for any project in which you’re the sole resource (engineer, product manager, subject matter expert, UX, QA, etc. etc.), if you want to be remotely successful, you must pick something that you want and will personally use. If not, you simply won’t have the insight needed to design and build a useful product. Also without meaningful use, you’ll be blind to the product’s shortcomings. To have the motivation needed to power through the tough times by yourself, e.g. when you’re really tired of working on it or have other competing obligations it should really be something that you’re personally passionate about. If you build a product based on your assumptions of what other people want without the resources to test these assumptions, you run the risk of making something that isn’t useful to anyone.

the_parzival 5y ago
Thank you for the advice. The issue that I'm facing as an engineer is , everything I want to use has already been built, maybe I can come upon with improved versions of them.
- saluki 5y ago
  It takes some time to come across the right idea. But it could be something you need that has already been built. Even though it's already in the wild, there might be demand for a new SaaS built for a specific framework or group of developers. Just because someone has already built something similar doesn't mean there is room for one more SaaS. I will say it seems like the majority of the success stories I come across are tools built for developers. So I would focus your attempts at developers. If you can create something to save them time or money, some of them will be willing to pay for it.
  - the_parzival 5y ago
    Making a Saas for developers is challenging, I will try to come up with some ideas to do the same. Thanks for the advice :)
- aranchelk 5y ago
  If look at all the products you like that are already out there, probably few are first of their kind. E.g. React was proceeded (and followed) by numerous JavaScript frameworks. It’s totally fine (perhaps preferable) to improve on an existing idea — build a better mouse trap. What products annoy you? That could be an indication a product isn’t really fulfilling your needs. Are there any software products/services you want that are too complicated and expensive? Maybe build something easier, cheaper, and more niche. If you’re still at a total loss, you might consider partnering with an expert in some area that has a problem you can solve.
shanecleveland 5y ago
I think this is where you start. Something that interests you, something you have knowledge around, something you will actually find useful yourself in your life or career. Second, and more challenging, is getting traffic to it. The best product with not traffic is worthless. Over the longterm, content and SEO are one channel. This takes time and is hard work. But it can be outsourced some. Be involved in communities and forums around it. Buy advertising. More than anything, build and product content. If something is working, double down on it.

the_parzival 5y ago

Thank you for the advice. The issue that I'm facing as an engineer is , everything I want to use has already been built, maybe I can come upon with improved versions of them.

saluki 5y ago
It takes some time to come across the right idea. But it could be something you need that has already been built. Even though it's already in the wild, there might be demand for a new SaaS built for a specific framework or group of developers. Just because someone has already built something similar doesn't mean there is room for one more SaaS. I will say it seems like the majority of the success stories I come across are tools built for developers. So I would focus your attempts at developers. If you can create something to save them time or money, some of them will be willing to pay for it.
- the_parzival 5y ago
  Making a Saas for developers is challenging, I will try to come up with some ideas to do the same. Thanks for the advice :)
aranchelk 5y ago
If look at all the products you like that are already out there, probably few are first of their kind. E.g. React was proceeded (and followed) by numerous JavaScript frameworks. It’s totally fine (perhaps preferable) to improve on an existing idea — build a better mouse trap. What products annoy you? That could be an indication a product isn’t really fulfilling your needs. Are there any software products/services you want that are too complicated and expensive? Maybe build something easier, cheaper, and more niche. If you’re still at a total loss, you might consider partnering with an expert in some area that has a problem you can solve.

shanecleveland 5y ago

I think this is where you start. Something that interests you, something you have knowledge around, something you will actually find useful yourself in your life or career. Second, and more challenging, is getting traffic to it. The best product with not traffic is worthless. Over the longterm, content and SEO are one channel. This takes time and is hard work. But it can be outsourced some. Be involved in communities and forums around it. Buy advertising. More than anything, build and product content. If something is working, double down on it.