Zuckeberg did it right? Atleast till it was viable? JUST DO IT.
Ask HN: Is it possible for a non-programmer to bootstrap a SaaS business alone?
11–20 of 76 posts
Re: Ask HN: Is it possible for a non-programmer to bootstrap a SaaS business alone?
#12No, that's idiotic. You will hardly understand what you're selling. Learn what you're doing.
Re: Ask HN: Is it possible for a non-programmer to bootstrap a SaaS business alone?
#13Zuckeberg did it right? Atleast till it was viable? JUST DO IT.
Zuckerberg was a programmer.
Re: Ask HN: Is it possible for a non-programmer to bootstrap a SaaS business alone?
#14I'm a developer and have helped bootstrap a couple of SaaS. The problem is that in most partnerships like this, the other person can usually only offer ideas or something very minimal with regards to the success of the business. I usually end up just doing everything myself. Unless you offer something besides just the idea (money, contacts, industry experience). The partnership will not work. I've had to quit a few s…
Yeah in a startup or small business I think every founder needs to do work. You can't have people who only essentially generate work for others. There are so many things that need doing when you're small that aren't directly related to development but still need to be done: applying for grants, tax concessions, marketing, building communities, competitive analysis, market research, payroll, accounting.
Re: Ask HN: Is it possible for a non-programmer to bootstrap a SaaS business alone?
#15F those people that tell you it's not possible. I barely knew how to code and I started a SaaS business. I worked my ass off to become an adequate coder and sell the product to customers. It's been three hard years and now it's starting to pay off. If you have a solution to a problem, one that people will pay for. You have a business. Keep pushing. You can do anything if you're willing to work hard for it. Take help…
Since you became a programmer, you haven't proven that "it" is possible. "It" being "a non-programmer to bootstrap a SaaS."
If you're trying to motivate the OP to learn programming, then that's another thing.
Re: Ask HN: Is it possible for a non-programmer to bootstrap a SaaS business alone?
#16It's not possible unless you have enough money to pay a good developer salary. I've been a part of one once, and the only reason I dealt with the clueless founders was because they paid me better than a regular coding job.
So yeah, it's possible, if you're rich or can get funding before you've got a product.
I've also been approached by countless guys asking me to work on their startup for free or something like 10% equity. Bitch please. I've been a consultant and run all sides of a business, what could you possibly bring to the table besides a nebulous and nearly worthless idea?
To those guys I've started asking for 60% equity and they usually walk away as if it was an insult.
Let me be clear about it. You can run a business with engineers alone and write software. Even one single engineer can run his own software business. If was running a start-up that makes software with two founders do I want one of them to make 0% of the product?
Re: Ask HN: Is it possible for a non-programmer to bootstrap a SaaS business alone?
#17Anything is possible if you just dollow your freams!
Re: Ask HN: Is it possible for a non-programmer to bootstrap a SaaS business alone?
#18F those people that tell you it's not possible. I barely knew how to code and I started a SaaS business. I worked my ass off to become an adequate coder and sell the product to customers. It's been three hard years and now it's starting to pay off. If you have a solution to a problem, one that people will pay for. You have a business. Keep pushing. You can do anything if you're willing to work hard for it. Take help…
> I barely knew how to code
So you started out already knowing some programmer and thus were not a non-programmer at any point in your SAAS, so you didn't do it either.
> I worked my ass off to become an adequate coder
Then you agree, it's not possible without being a coder.
Re: Ask HN: Is it possible for a non-programmer to bootstrap a SaaS business alone?
#19Absolutely.
I contracted for a person who built a small but very profitable SaaS app using contractors.
There are some caveats though. The person has a smattering of technical knowledge which prevented him from being completely taken advantage of by contractors. And he was an effective manager (a rarity to be sure). And he knew exactly what he wanted and stayed on top of details of how it was implemented. Although not a necessarily a "programmer" he also knew enough about using Git to review/merge changes. And perhaps most importantly he had the financial backing to complete the project.
I've also worked for other people who didn't have these qualities but figured they'd just hire some people to build some stuff without keeping on top of it or in many cases having a clear vision of what they wanted. Predictably these projects didn't turn out well for them.
But yes, it is possible. I've seen it.
Re: Ask HN: Is it possible for a non-programmer to bootstrap a SaaS business alone?
#20I (developer) chatted with a water quality consultant during a plane flight. Consultant mentioned the CRM for his niche business sucked. He asked if I'd be interested in building a CRM for no money upfront, instead making money later (a percentage of his business I could sell, a license fee, profit sharing, whatever). I realized in that moment once the app was built, I wouldn't need him at all, and that I could sell it (let's assume it'd be a valuable product) to all of his competitors. Either he wins, or I win, but there wasn't a scenario I could imagine where we both won. I explained that to him, and he was no longer interested in having me build the software for him.