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Ask HN: What's a side project you built to make money that hasn't?

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Re: Ask HN: What's a side project you built to make money that hasn't?

#451

Post by ZenoArrow »

dejv wrote: post #116
ZenoArrow wrote: post #114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is this a web app or a desktop app?

web app and unfinished mobile app (native iOS)

I'd suggest you might have more luck with a desktop app. Could wrap your existing web app with Electron or Sciter to avoid needing to rewrite the GUI. Businesses need to know they can rely on the software they use, and that's an easier sell when they can run it on their own hardware. I'd suggest a better business model is a relatively low cost for the software but charge for an optional support subscription.

Re: Ask HN: What's a side project you built to make money that hasn't?

#452

Post by Nexxxeh »

arcatek wrote: post #230
wyldfire wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

FYI, PICO-8 [1] is a similar commercial project AFAICT. Maybe you're right that there is a market there. [1] https://www.lexaloffle.com/pico-8.php

I'm sure there is! Sega announced last month that it would be releasing its catalogue online[1], and let's not forget the success of the SNES Mini, released last year. I was just on the market too soon, and especially without any connection to the people that could make the dream come true (hence why we applied to Y Combinator - more than the money, the network would have helped us). Oh well. :( [1] https://www.theve…

To clarify, NES Mini was last year, SNES Mini is this year's sequel.

Re: Ask HN: What's a side project you built to make money that hasn't?

#454

Post by pbiggar »

greysteil wrote: post #356

I built Dependabot ( https://dependabot.com ), a service that checks your dependencies are up-to-date every morning and creates pull requests for you if they're not. Intention was to make dependency management suck less, whilst also adding a bit of runway to a bigger startup I wanted to do. * Spent 2 months building it - much longer than I'd thought. The work required to get from a prototype (2 days) to a SaaS produc…

As someone in this space, I think you're approach this wrong. You find early users by hand, reaching out to people you know have this problem and asking them to use the product (you would typically do this before even making it work properly as a SaaS product).

Jessica Livingston says it better than me: http://foundersatwork.posthaven.com/why-startups-need-to-foc...

Re: Ask HN: What's a side project you built to make money that hasn't?

#455

Post by literallycancer »

shahbaby wrote: post #40

To own a firearm in Canada you have to pass a certain test. I made a simple quiz app ( https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=ca2.testprojec... ) that would help people prepare for that test. My main goal was to learn how to make apps. It did generate revenue in the beginning but it was enough to buy coffee a few times a week. Then the government updated the firearm regulations and now everyone has to take a m…

If the questions are anything like the theoretical test when you are getting a driving license, your app can still be useful.

Re: Ask HN: What's a side project you built to make money that hasn't?

#456

Post by marktangotango »

cyberferret wrote: post #318

I blogged about my first foray into the world of creating a web app that would generate recurring revenue for me here [0]. It was my first attempt. I attempted two other web apps which also had dismal results, before my fourth (current) one, which is doing great and getting better. Since writing that blog post, that particular web app (which is still running BTW) has had a handful of users sign up and is generating a…

Your experience corresponds to mine almost exactly, have you written anything about your subsequent attempts, and the one that finally succeeded? No contact info in your profile btw.

Re: Ask HN: What's a side project you built to make money that hasn't?

#457

Post by daveguy »

cploonker wrote: post #49

I built a corporate 360 degree employee feedback system. It is basically google-page-rank-algorithm applied to feedback system and few other mathematical tricks to auto-normalize. Not sure though so many HR heads liked the idea but i could not make them write a cheque. You can look at the first video on this page: http://www.groupraisal.com/ to know the details.

Please get rid of the video titled "What the ?" on your home page. It is very unprofessional. If I was in HR, or even if I wasn't, I wouldn't touch your company after seeing that video on your home page.

Re: Ask HN: What's a side project you built to make money that hasn't?

#458

Post by scottybowl »

55555 wrote: post #51

choosejarvis.com -- not really a side project, but doesn't make much money. has revenue of a few hundred dollars per month. Would sell it instantly for $15,000 even though we invested $100k in development. converthero.com -- would sell this for $10-15k. It's a opt-in popup maker. > Why do you think it hasn't been as successful as you thought it would be? Marketing is hard.

Cameron - please email me on scott.bowler [at] dcsworldwide.net, would like to discuss purchasing Jarvis

Re: Ask HN: What's a side project you built to make money that hasn't?

#459

Post by scottybowl »

55555 wrote: post #51

choosejarvis.com -- not really a side project, but doesn't make much money. has revenue of a few hundred dollars per month. Would sell it instantly for $15,000 even though we invested $100k in development. converthero.com -- would sell this for $10-15k. It's a opt-in popup maker. > Why do you think it hasn't been as successful as you thought it would be? Marketing is hard.

Cameron - please email me on scott.bowler [at] dcsworldwide.net, would like to discuss purchasing Jarvis

Re: Ask HN: What's a side project you built to make money that hasn't?

#460

Post by cyberferret »

marktangotango wrote: post #456
cyberferret wrote: post #318

I blogged about my first foray into the world of creating a web app that would generate recurring revenue for me here [0]. It was my first attempt. I attempted two other web apps which also had dismal results, before my fourth (current) one, which is doing great and getting better. Since writing that blog post, that particular web app (which is still running BTW) has had a handful of users sign up and is generating a…

Your experience corresponds to mine almost exactly, have you written anything about your subsequent attempts, and the one that finally succeeded? No contact info in your profile btw.

Apologies, I will have to fix up my bio on here. I killed the old one to put in the Keybase identifier and never went back to fix it...

My current SaaS app that is actually doing well and making money (and just hit profitability) is www.hrpartner.io

I blog about some aspects of it at http://devan.blaze.com.au amongst other things. One day I will sit down and construct a full post on that particular journey, but I am afraid that survivorship bias might take over and I will forget some of the hard stuff that happened...

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