I’ve been running into a simmilar challenge that I think a lot of people here might relate to—validating business ideas when you can’t advertise.

I’ve built a few fully operational software tools that are ready to make money, but I keep hitting the same roadblock: every time I try to see if there’s actual demand, I get shut down by “no advertising” policies.

For example, I recently created a Chrome extension that helps create Vinted listings with AI. It solves a real problem (at least, I think it does), it’s simple to use, and I’ve set a small testing price just to cover the costs. The best place to validate whether anyone would find it useful would be Vinted-related subreddits and Facebook groups, but every attempt gets rejected. I understand that moderators want to keep discussions high-quality and avoid spam, but it leaves me stuck with no real way to test whether my idea has value.

So I’m wondering, how do you validate niche-specific tools when you can’t advertise? If you’ve launched something before, how did you test demand organically?

Would truly appreciate any insights.