Indie Hackers

Bram Kanstein (@bramk) has more experience validating, building, and launching online products than almost anyone, and more success than most. One of his earlier creations, Startup Stash, still retains its title as the most-upvoted Product Hunt submission of all time. Today, Bram spends just as much time teaching others as he does making himself. In this episode, Bram and I talk about the importance of being an early adopter, the best strategies for finding new ideas, and why "mindset" is the first thing he teaches in his new course, No-Code MVP.Transcript, speaker information, and more: https://www.indiehackers.com/podcast/160-bram-kanstein-of-no-code-mvp

Tomas Pueyo, author of the mega-viral article 'Coronavirus: Why You Must Act Now,' and VP of Growth at Course Hero, discusses the universal structure of stories, the importance of starting with the problem, empowering customers through storytelling in marketing, understanding customer problems with examples from Wave and Coursera, and the context, impact, and factors contributing to the success of his viral article on COVID-19.

Rand Fishkin (@randfish) has been doing something a lot of founders are afraid to do: He's blogging about the coronavirus pandemic directly from his company website, for all his customers to see. And it's working! Not is he providing useful advice for founders and marketers, but he's also setting an example for how others can do this same. In this episode Rand and I sat down to discuss the changing nature of the online conversation around COVID-19, how founders and businesses can communicate effectively and empathetically in this environment, and the most important things to get right when preparing for the looming recession.Transcript, speaker information, and more: https://www.indiehackers.com/podcast/158-rand-fishkin-of-sparktoro

Baird Hall's (@BairdHall) first attempt at starting up didn't go so well. When all was said and done, he'd burned through his savings without finding a working business model, and he and his co-founder were forced to sell the business for parts. In other words: they were ready for round 2. In this episode, Baird explains why he can't stop bootstrapping businesses, why it's important to work together with a great team, and how listening to users helped him grow Wavve and Zubtitle to over $100,000/month in total recurring revenue.Transcript, speaker information, and more: https://www.indiehackers.com/podcast/157-baird-hall-of-wavve

Amy Hoy (@amyhoy) didn't merely survive the 2008 recession: she built multiple profitable online businesses that grew to support her and, eventually, to generate over $1M in annual recurring revenue. Amy and I sat down for a casual conversation (which we livestreamed to YouTube) about the looming recession, how Amy made it through the last one, and how founders should be thinking about their businesses going forward.

Ever since I came across his blog years ago, Brian Balfour (@bbalfour) has been one of the most influential people for how I think about growing online businesses. Not only is Brian a successful blogger, but he's also served as the VP of Growth at HubSpot and founded four companies. His most recent business, Reforge, generates millions in revenue helping tech professionals boost their skills. In this episode, Brian explains why it's crucial to have a visual model for growth, shares his models for growing Reforge, and discusses why sometimes the best thing you can do is the exact opposite of what everyone else is.Transcript, speaker information, and more: https://www.indiehackers.com/podcast/155-brian-balfour-of-reforge

Customers will lie to you. So will your friends and family. It's one of the most surprising things you discover when you talk to people about what you're building. Rob Fitzpatrick (@robfitz) should know. He spent years making a habit of talking to customers, only to learn the wrong lessons and have his startup flame out anyway. There had to be a better way. In his book, The Mom Test, Rob shares his strategies for talking to customers the right way, gathering accurate feedback, and even finding people to talk to in the first place. And in this episode, Rob and I dive deeper into each of these topics.Transcript, speaker information, and more: https://www.indiehackers.com/podcast/154-rob-fitzpatrick-of-the-mom-test

William Candillon (@wcandillon) didn't plan to become an indie hacker when he first started making coding videos on YouTube. He just wanted to learn more efficiently and hold himself accountable. Three years later, he's built an audience of tens of thousands of viewers, and he's making over $6,000/month teaching what he's learned about React Native. In this episode, Will and I talk about why building in public, sharing transparently, and being vulnerable make it easier to succeed as an indie hacker.Transcript, speaker information, and more: https://www.indiehackers.com/podcast/153-quick-chat-with-william-candillon

Transistor.fm founder Justin Jackson (@mijustin) goes head-to-head with Earnest Capital investor Tyler Tringas (@tylertringas) on the topic of picking the right market. The decisions you make when you're just getting started on a project carry the most weight and might affect your life for years to come. How big of a market should you target? How important of a problem should you solve? What does Justin mean when advises working on a "main dish" instead of a "side dish?" And how do a serial founder's views on this topic differ from an investor's?Transcript, speaker information, and more: https://www.indiehackers.com/podcast/152-tyler-tringas-and-justin-jackson

Sergio Mattei (@matteing) might be the most energetic founder I've had on the podcast. After discovering the world of online maker communities, he built his own from scratch—Makerlog—and grew it into something special through his passion for sharing and celebrating others' achievements. In this episode, Sergio and I discuss the importance of finding balance in all things as a founder: gathering insights from users vs your personal vision; seeking feedback from the market vs chasing validation from other makers; and getting things done on a consistent basis without letting productivity hacks and hustle culture overshadow the people and things you love outside of your business.Transcript, speaker information, and more: https://www.indiehackers.com/podcast/151-sergio-mattei-of-makerlog