B2C vs B2B SaaS as an indie hacker - Val Sopi, Blogstatic
Jan 3, 2024
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Val Sopi, founder of Blogstatic, talks about his journey in the SaaS industry, transitioning from web design to creating his own product. He discusses the challenges of pricing strategy and competing with Ghost. Val shares his pragmatic approach to growth decisions and why he prefers the B2B route over VC funding.
Val highlights the importance of marketing and the impact of team size in previous projects.
Val contemplates venturing into a B2B SaaS model to scale Blog Static while prioritizing user needs over financial goals.
Deep dives
Val's journey with previous projects and the challenges faced
Val discusses his previous projects, including GoodWarp and Claritas, which had varying degrees of success. He reflects on the lessons learned from these ventures, such as the importance of marketing and the impact of team size. Val also highlights the fortunate sale of Claritas, which provided him with a runway for his future endeavors.
The development and challenges of Blog Static
Val shares the story behind Blog Static, a lightweight blogging platform aimed at competing with Ghost. He explains his motivation to create a simple and affordable alternative, catering to bloggers who don't require extensive features or high pricing. While Blog Static is performing well, it's not generating the revenue needed for significant growth. Val contemplates the difficulties of scaling and the potential need for more extensive marketing efforts.
Exploring a B2B SaaS option and concerns about VC funding
Val examines the possibility of venturing into a B2B SaaS model as an alternative to scaling Blog Static. He expresses reservations about seeking venture capital funding due to potential compromises and conflicts of interest. Val values his independence and desires to make decisions based on user needs, rather than solely financial goals. He acknowledges the challenges ahead but remains determined to continue growing Blog Static while exploring other avenues for additional income.
Today I’m joined by Val Sopi, the founder of Blogstatic, a lightweight blogging platform built to take on the likes of Ghost. Currently Val is sitting around $1k a month, but with a low-priced annual plans approach, he’s relying on new sign ups and plan upgrades instead of recurring subscriptions. So he’s at a crossroads of needing to pour fuel on the fire to grow his low-cost blogging platform, or attempt to build a B2B SaaS, which he believes is a much more sustainable option for an indie founder. Val has been hardened by business successes and failures, so I love his pragmatic approach to the decisions he’s making.
Timestamps
00:00 Intro
01:39 Val's background - web design shop to failed SaaS
04:10 Learning to code and starting Claritask
04:53 Selling Claritask
05:52 Launching Blogstatic
06:42 Taking a loan to bet on himself
07:40 The crossroads of stagnating growth
08:39 Being a low cost alternative in a competitive market
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