A Product Market Fit Show | Startup Podcast for Founders 1st-time founder grows AI headshot app from $0 to $10M ARR in 2 years—with no funding. | Wesley Tian, Founder of Aragon
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Apr 24, 2025 Wesley Tian, founder of the AI headshot app Aragon, shares his incredible journey from being broke and rejected by VCs to hitting $10M ARR in just two years. He reveals bold strategies like guerrilla marketing, optimizing landing pages, and leveraging affiliate blogs that drove early sales. Wesley discusses the importance of timing and niche focus amidst competition, as well as his experiences with customer support and managing burnout. His insights provide practical tactics for founders looking to navigate their own paths to success.
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Pivot to Professional Headshots
- Wesley Tian described iterating through multiple AI image tool ideas including professional headshots and anime portraits. - He discovered professional headshots had the highest waitlist interest, which became their key product focus.
Boost Conversion with Social Proof
- Improve landing pages by showcasing features and adding strong social proof like testimonials and user counts. - Use clear calls-to-action and make pricing very visible to increase conversion rates.
Guerrilla Marketing Tactics
- Wesley used guerrilla marketing by posting on Reddit and Team Blind to promote his AI headshot app for dating profiles and job hunting. - These actions helped drive traffic and improve search rankings indirectly.
