🧂 Top Advice for First-Time Founders Building and Launching Products

Hey there. Happy Saturday! Today, I want to share some tips on building your first product.

Last week, I asked the founder community a simple question:

What advice would you give to someone building their first product?

The response was overwhelming, with more than 100 replies. As I scrolled through the answers, I noticed common patterns emerging. If you’re diving into the world of building your first product, I’ve gathered some top advice just for you. Here are the key takeaways:

1. Start Small, Launch MVP

One of the biggest mistakes first-time founders make is waiting too long to launch. Instead of perfecting every detail, focus on building a Minimum Viable Product (MVP)—the simplest version of your product that still solves a core problem for your users. Launch it as quickly as possible.

Why? Because the sooner you launch, the sooner you can start collecting feedback from real users. Your MVP doesn’t need to be flawless; it needs to be functional and testable. As long as it solves one user problem, you can already let people test and use it. Don’t wait until “everything” is ready.

2. Validate Your Idea with Real Users and Payments

Before you pour all your resources into development, take a step back. Start with a landing page or another simple method to validate your idea. Early feedback is crucial.

With a landing page and a simple waitlist, you can determine if there's a market fit and build features based on your users' needs, rather than on assumptions.

Talk about it on social media, and use the cheapest and fastest ways to gather early feedback. For instance, my Twitter friend Abishek is great at doing this. His new product, Lightscope, received significant attention because he shared his ideas before launching.

What’s even better? Sell the idea first and see if users would pay. Kunmail puts it perfectly: sell 10 contracts before you build it. Revenue is one of the best ways to validate your idea.

By engaging with potential customers early, you ensure that your product solves a real problem and meets actual market demands—not just your assumptions.

3. Continuously Test, Iterate, and Improve

Once your product is out there, don’t stop. Keep testing your assumptions and iterating based on feedback. Your MVP is just the beginning; ongoing improvements are what will truly set your product apart.

Don’t fall into the trap of waiting for a "perfect" product. Premature optimization is the root of all evil. Your product will never be perfect, and that’s okay. What matters is continuous improvement.

4. Just Launch, and Be Fast 🚀

When in doubt, remember this advice from multiple experienced founders: Just launch. Delaying your launch for perfection is often counterproductive.

Even if you take months to plan and build a product, you never know how it’s going to perform until it’s out there. When you launch fast, you shorten the time it takes to get it in front of real customers, gaining valuable insights that allow you to pivot quickly.

5. Start Distribution/Marketing ASAP

Finally, remember that distribution is often harder than building the product itself. You want to kickstart marketing even before you build the product.

Launch a blog, engage on social media, or talk about it in your newsletter/podcast before you even have a real product. Build up your waitlist so that when you finally launch, many will turn into buyers immediately.

Bonus Tip: Plan for More Runway Than You Think You Need

Building and launching a product often takes longer and costs more than expected.

Secure 10x more runway than you think you need. This financial cushion gives you the flexibility to iterate, pivot, and grow without the constant pressure of running out of resources.

Wrapping Up

Arne Gokceln captured all of the above in his reply. These are the essential things a first-time founder should follow.

Building a product is a learning process. You’ll make mistakes, but that’s part of the journey. Start small, listen to your users, iterate continuously, and don’t be afraid to launch. The sooner you get your product into the hands of real users, the sooner you’ll start seeing what works and what doesn’t.

Good luck, and remember: the most successful products are the result of relentless iteration and a deep understanding of customer needs.

P.S. If you’re looking for more tips or need help designing or building your MVP, feel free to reach out—I’m here to help!

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