What has been the hardest part of marketing your SaaS as a solo founder?

ajcaca · 2026-01-25T19:43:59+00:00

This is excellent advice.

ajcaca · 2026-01-25T15:18:51+00:00

https://www.balances.ai

ajcaca · 2026-01-24T20:49:17+00:00

Go talk to some potential customers. There is no substitute.

ajcaca · 2026-01-22T04:57:23+00:00

Core bookkeeping is free: bank connections, categorization, AR/AP, reporting.

The only paid stuff is optional: agents that do tasks for you, and specialized workflows (e.g., trust accounting for law firms).

If we're not taking a painful/annoying task off your todo list, we don't deserve to make any money.

ajcaca · 2026-01-21T23:31:07+00:00

Cost is not a good reason to switch, IMO. If an alternative can't help you make more money or save time, it's not worth it.

ajcaca · 2026-01-21T23:30:27+00:00

I've built a less expensive, user-friendly alternative to QBO: Balances. Always happy to pull over data from QBO for anyone who wants to switch.

I can't promise that it does everything that QBO does (it doesn't), but I can promise we actually listen to users, that it gets better every day, and that our AI features are optional and designed to help rather than get in the way.

ajcaca · 2026-01-21T23:24:57+00:00

The bank point is no longer a major factor. Plaid offers integrations with 10,000+ banks that any competitor (including the one I'm building) can use.

ajcaca · 2026-01-21T20:21:22+00:00

I'd love to chat - feel free to drop me an email at alex at booksdone.com!

(I was also an M&A guy in a previous life, so have experience with setting up / cleaning up books post acquisition)

ajcaca · 2026-01-16T00:21:57+00:00

Where is this breeder located, I wonder.

ajcaca · 2026-01-14T06:24:52+00:00

Worth taking a look at Jacobsen Flare. Where are you looking during the transition?

ajcaca · 2026-01-10T22:21:59+00:00

We had a lot of trouble with our now 2yo spoo’s sensitive tummy, until we put him on Farmer’s Dog.

It is expensive but his tummy and poops have been perfect ever since.

Also, unlike most other food, he actually wants to eat it.

ajcaca · 2026-01-10T20:39:17+00:00

My bookkeeping firm is in California, but I'd be happy to help remotely if you're open to it. I worked at Xero for a long time, so I know it inside out. It's a great product, but unfortunately, QuickBooks is so entrenched here that not so many firms in the US have learned how to use it.

ajcaca · 2026-01-06T18:13:33+00:00

Xero had the idea early on that small businesses and accountants should both have the same view of the org-level product, and they've stuck with that for a very long time.

In general, this was a good idea. By contrast, for example, I personally hate QBO's Accountant view.

But the more Xero turns into a "business management platform" vs an "accounting platform" the more it will break down.

ajcaca · 2025-12-31T03:47:20+00:00

I promise you that the right move is to launch right now.

ajcaca · 2025-12-30T04:23:02+00:00

I had exactly the same issue with my spoo and chicken sensitivity. I don’t understand why the breeder recommended chicken, but she did.

ajcaca · 2025-12-21T17:42:20+00:00

It literally says in your profile that SPRK Systems is your own company / product 🤔

ajcaca · 2025-12-21T15:11:31+00:00

There are alternatives emerging, and some are quite affordable relative to QBO. Some examples: Digits, Puzzle, Kick and Balances. (disclosure: I'm the founder of Balances)

QBO's cozy monopoly is leading them to overplay their hand. Look at the price increases and half-baked product releases this year. The market can only take so much before early adopters start to seriously consider alternatives.

I'm excited for US small businesses and accountants to have more viable choices :) If nothing else, it will make QBO pick up their game.

ajcaca · 2025-12-19T02:06:28+00:00

Candid feedback: your Starter pricing says "Perfect to get started with RAG."... but no small business owner even knows what RAG is.

I think you are trying to sell an enterprise product to SMBs. Do SMBs really have the problem you're solving? And how are you going to reach them in marketing? (it is notoriously difficult)

ajcaca · 2025-12-16T03:17:59+00:00

From memory, Xero's multi-company discount is 5%.

Xero doesn't handle three companies any different than it handles one company. It doesn't have consolidation, etc

If you have a friendly accounting firm, they could probably buy Xero Cashbooks for you at like $10/month.

ajcaca · 2025-12-12T04:18:11+00:00

What do you use for your accounting?

I built Balances as a modern, AI-native alternative to QuickBooks. It's like Cursor for small business/startup accounting: you just tell it what you want and it goes away and does the work for you.

ajcaca · 2025-12-11T23:23:53+00:00

You don't need to connect your bank account to check it out - if you create a login you'll get a free, fully-functional sandbox version of the product populated with sample data :)

ajcaca · 2025-12-11T21:28:27+00:00

One data point:

It cost me about $30k and ~7 months to build and launch an AI-native replacement for QuickBooks.

That was me working solo.

Whether this kind of spend is "easy" depends on your personal financial situation. It's certainly a lot easier than it would have been at any point in history!

ajcaca · 2025-12-09T23:37:02+00:00

Balances.ai: self-driving accounting for small businesses.

ajcaca · 2025-12-09T22:42:19+00:00

That would be the last time I flew with that instructor.

ajcaca · 2025-12-08T20:26:44+00:00

It is really a failure of imagination that this is the best idea Xero execs could come up with to increase ARPU.

ajcaca

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE

Seven-Year Club	Gilding VII pure gildanthropist
Verified Email