Cold emails is #1 best way to market a new SaaS product because its free and you get to hear feedback from customers. Aside from that "marketing" is really just building a list of a bunch of different tactics and trying each of them until you find something that works.
The best thing for you to do is build a list of people and reach out to them asking them to try the app. You then use that group of people to gather data about the product. Also ask the people to refer their friend.
At octavius we build SaaS products and assemble teams to support the products as they grow.
Businesses fail because they run out of cash, yet many companies are still founded without thinking about how, or if, the business will make money. These types of companies push forward in hope of getting acquired but this strategy isn’t sustainable. Businesses are not lottery tickets.
At octavius we are more interested in building sustainable businesses. We incubate ideas that can generate cash from day one, and our process of systematically approaching product development allows us to better understand risk. Once we have an accurate understanding of a market, products that have the best opportunity to succeed are spun out into their own companies to grow. The partners of octavius are founders who have bootstrapped to sustainability or sold businesses in the marketing tech space. We are currently based in a beautifully restored brick warehouse located in El Segundo’s just south of LAX.
#### Tech Lead Responsibilities:
The tech lead should think of development as a craft and see themselves as master craftsmen. They are primarily responsible for the development and maintenance of the products that we are incubating. Ideal candidates are full of ideas and are constantly looking for ways to improve themselves and the world around them. Candidates should also be able to lead a team of developers.
#### General Requirements:
* The belief that the only limitation on what is possible is ones imagination
* Open mind
* Self motivated
* A passion for learning
* The ability to “think on your feet”
* A willingness to solve problems with the best technology available
* Enjoys working on various projects
* Must operate effectively on a team
* Hustle
#### Specific Requirements:
* Clear written and oral communications skills
* 5+ Years experience writing production quality code
* Demonstrated experience working in multiple tech stacks ie Rails/Node/Ember
* Experience launching and managing AWS instances
* Experience recruiting and leading a team
* A CS degree or equivalent work experience
* SaaS experience is a plus
Email recruiting {at} octaviuslabs.com if interested
At octavius we build SaaS products and assemble teams to support the products as they grow.
Businesses fail because they run out of cash, yet many companies are still founded without thinking about how, or if, the business will make money. These types of companies push forward in hope of getting acquired but this strategy isn’t sustainable. Businesses are not lottery tickets.
At octavius we are more interested in building sustainable businesses. We incubate ideas that can generate cash from day one, and our process of systematically approaching product development allows us to better understand risk. Once we have an accurate understanding of a market, products that have the best opportunity to succeed are spun out into their own companies to grow.
The partners of octavius are founders who have bootstrapped to sustainability or sold businesses in the marketing tech space.
We are currently based in a beautifully restored brick warehouse located in El Segundo’s just south of LAX.
#### Tech Lead Responsibilities:
The tech lead should think of development as a craft and see themselves as master craftsmen. They are primarily responsible for the development and maintenance of the products that we are incubating. Ideal candidates are full of ideas and are constantly looking for ways to improve themselves and the world around them. Candidates should also be able to lead a team of developers.
#### General Requirements:
* The belief that the only limitation on what is possible is ones imagination
* Open mind
* Self motivated
* A passion for learning
* The ability to “think on your feet”
* A willingness to solve problems with the best technology available
* Enjoys working on various projects
* Must operate effectively on a team
* Hustle
#### Specific Requirements:
* Clear written and oral communications skills
* 5+ Years experience writing production quality code
* Demonstrated experience working in multiple tech stacks ie Rails/Node/Ember
* Experience launching and managing AWS instances
* Experience recruiting and leading a team
* A CS degree or equivalent work experience
* SaaS experience is a plus
Email recruiting {at} octaviuslabs.com if interested
Let me start by saying that I've founded and sold 2 companies one for a big return and one that was a soft landing. The first co I started when I was working full time at a job.
To answer your question:
Since you are self employed you can put whatever you want on your resume --ie you can call yourself the VP of Development, dish washer, or whatever. In fact, I have a friend that called himself VP of Business Development for his company in the early days.
So I don't think it will hurt much from a political perspective. You just need to be able to tilt the narrative to your favor if things go wrong.
ie: "I left XYZ company because I wanted to try to solve this very important problem. I starred the company, got investors, hired a team, delivered product to customers, and we ran into some market difficulties so shut it down and am now looking for a job"
The one thing that will change, however, is you.
When you pass through the looking glass & start your own company, you will fundamentally change. You will develop skills in many area and you will know what it feels like to work on something that you really love that is really difficult. This is what makes it the hard to work a job after a project. Because you know what that feels like and you will want to feel it again. So you will be VERY picky.
Also, there is the power law to consider. If you start a co, the skills you acquire will compound over time. Quickly they will become the biggest asset you have and you will realize that.
My #1 advice for you is to stop thinking about what will happen in a downside and look at what will happen in an upside. The more you think about how a new venture can screw you, the more likely it will.
I haven't read the book but this is a very myopic comment. Information is the only truly valuable asset and the first thing you should be thinking about is learning.
I once wrote on how a team I was on drove a bundle of users to a new app. It may give you some inspiration: http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/237922
I happy to brainstorm ideas with you if you ping me on twitter @jsfour