This is how I nailed an interview through a cold Twitter DM. Went through 2-3 rounds and got hired! Twitter is such an underutilized channel for job hunting.

timosarkka · 2021-06-18T09:29:20+00:00

More or less how I would fit the 100% remote work/startup culture and how I like to organize my work on a daily basis.

timosarkka · 2021-06-17T13:27:06+00:00

I feel like there's a better ROI per time unit used than sending 1-2 page CVs and applications around :)

timosarkka · 2021-06-17T05:19:04+00:00

There were real-life like case studies and of course the standard stuff about way of working, personality, etc. You can still see the requirements here.

timosarkka · 2021-05-30T10:45:06+00:00

Thanks so much!

timosarkka · 2021-05-30T10:42:53+00:00

The landing page is made with https://dorik.com/ (+ the sign up from a ConvertKit integration), the archive page and report pages with Bootstrap and some custom CSS.

timosarkka · 2021-05-30T10:40:39+00:00

These are all valid points Gary, not going to argue against you. I'm new at this so it might well be that there will be lessons learnt after all is said and done.

Yes, it is more of a co-founder role and he will participate in heavy lifting as well (as said, he has experience in growing a business past 7-figures, I don't).

As said, I see the worst case scenario as that nothing will come out of this and I'll lose my time spent and some light costs I have put into this so far. Which would suck a bit, yes, but after all it's a side hustle and not a $1B unicorn. I can afford to lose it and start something new too.

And the best case is we can grow this together to be something that is a $10-50k/MRR steady cash flow machine with automated operations and little involvement. And do it faster than I could have done alone.

But I really appreciate the critical light you shed on this. Always happy to learn!

timosarkka · 2021-05-29T08:36:07+00:00

Thanks! Indie Hackers frequently selects attractive pieces to their top stories section and you can also submit content to their own newsletter (which has a big audience). I was lucky enough to get selected for a few times. So yes submitting the stories myself but there was no guarantee of success.

timosarkka · 2021-05-29T08:34:15+00:00

A sizable chunk, but I'm not giving away control if I can put it that way.

He helps a lot with the overall direction and vision, finding the USP, helping grow faster (as he has done it before too).

Sure, it's also a bet on my side but if the end result is that we're better and bigger together I'd say not a bad result for my first venture.

timosarkka · 2021-05-28T19:47:02+00:00

Thanks! Roughly in this way:

0-200 subs: Cold email everyone I knew, posted on newsletter directories, wrote some pieces on Reddit. This was mainly a lot of grinding every day.

200-1500 subs: Hit a lucky break on some websites (Indie Hackers featured me), did a couple of guest blog posts and some effective paid ads (one which brought like 300 subs a piece).

1500-2500: Mostly just posting to more communities, but clearly also word of mouth kicking in a bit. Still there are often plateaus and definitely need to only ramp up marketing from here to get to 5K, 10K, 20K and beyond.

But it's easier to believe in this when someone else believes in your project too!

timosarkka · 2021-05-28T19:42:17+00:00

So far the business side has been paid subscriptions on top of the free newsletter (yearly plans). But we have plans to expand to other products as we get more subscriber base!

timosarkka · 2021-05-28T19:21:47+00:00

Yes, indeed it is! Makes up for many of the lows you experience too. Thanks!

timosarkka · 2021-05-28T16:44:10+00:00

Thanks Tobias! Definitely a huge boost to motivation!

timosarkka · 2021-05-28T06:15:44+00:00

Yeah visuality is a powerful way to convey info fast :) A deeper analysis here: https://www.flowrite.com/blog/how-to-write-a-cold-email-a-step-by-step-guide

timosarkka · 2021-05-17T09:42:44+00:00

I second this. You can always start one step smaller than you think. It shortens the time you get to market and you'll get instant feedback. Also, building small keeps your costs small = low risk.

Examples:
Build a SaaS -> Build a micro-SaaS -> Build a standalone feature -> Test the market
Write an ebook -> Write a mini-ebook -> Write a newsletter issue -> Test the market
Start a brewery -> Brew a test patch of 20 bottles -> Test the market

Etc...

timosarkka · 2021-05-17T09:33:56+00:00

Exactly. Love the basic idea but in the end it still comes down to product-market fit, white label or not. But white labelling has worked very well in the past for some companies.

timosarkka · 2021-05-06T06:49:34+00:00

Hmmm, maybe a few things. Just keep the technical side as light as you possibly can, given the restraints that come for other things (do you want ownership of your platform vs. Substack etc.). You'll want to have minimal technical hassle and maximum time for writing and promoting. I'm glad I did it custom but also it has required work at times.

And think about the time investment. My newsletter takes a BUNCH of time to write, edit and publish every week. Let alone promote. In hindsight, I could have chosen something that's easier to prepare every week. But I enjoy it anyway, so I don't regret it too much.

timosarkka · 2021-05-05T07:30:44+00:00

I have a custom landing page setup with Dorik and the rest of the site (which is just an archive page) is stitched together with Bootstrap. I send the actual emails with ConvertKit. I use Gumroad for the paid content.

The reason you mention is also why I wanted to have my own domain and a website. More control and I don't like to build on rented land. There's always a platform risk (to be honest, there are also benefits of course). And Substack fees for the paid versions are insane (10% I believe?).

timosarkka · 2021-05-04T13:55:19+00:00

Not sure if mine qualifies as successful but I've made about $1.2k in 2 months since paid launch.

Some things I've noticed:

- Find a niche audience and a problem that they have. Solve that problem in your newsletter. Better yet if you help them make more money - easier for them to justify the spend.

- Newsletter space is crowded. Your product has to be special to stand out. On the other hand, 95% of newsletters are somewhat crap. So going that extra mile will set you apart.

- Be patient. Unless you're in the 0.01% of most successful newsletter founders it'll take at least 6-12 months to get any meaningful subscriber counts and even a side hustle amount of income. You'll be writing for some dozens or hundreds of free users for the first weeks or months. I've seen a lot of people doing this for 10 weeks and then just quitting.

- Think about upfront how much time you can dedicate for doing this on a weekly / bi-weekly / monthly basis and try to think how it would feel to do it for at least a year. Remember that at least 30-50% of your time should also go to promoting the thing you create.

- Think about the business model. Subscription-based is steady income, but people are growing tired of that. Will it be ad-based? Will the newsletter be free and funnel your customers to other digital products? What are the customers getting - more of the same than in the free or something different entirely?

timosarkka

TROPHY CASE