Brian Casel hosts a candid conversation with Val Sopi and Christian Genco about the realities of launching new SaaS products in 2025. All three founders are at pivotal moments in their entrepreneurial journeys, wrestling with what products to build next, how to balance consulting work with product development, and finding the elusive "founder-product fit" that makes building a business sustainable and enjoyable. They share their strategies for validating ideas, dealing with competition, and defining what success truly means beyond just revenue targets.
The discussion delves into the unique challenges of the current SaaS landscape, from the impact of AI on product development to the importance of building products that genuinely excite you as a founder. Whether you're considering your next product launch or questioning your current direction, this episode offers valuable perspectives from bootstrappers who've been through multiple product cycles and are navigating their next moves.
Timestamps:
- (00:00) - Welcome
- (01:35) - Guest introduction
- (03:31) - Why are we considering a new Saas business in 2025?
- (12:07) - Have we thought about doing something else besides Saas?
- (22:09) - How do you convince yourself that your new idea is going to work?
- (28:15) - How do we view competition in Saas?
- (32:43) - Thinking about founder fit as much as market fit
- (37:43) - What is Christian thinking about for his own product?
- (44:07) - How to think about competition in 2025
- (52:29) - How do we stay excited about our products or projects?
- (59:09) - What does success look like for you this year?
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Links mentioned in this episode
- Instrumental Products - Brian's company
- Clarity Flow - Brian's SaaS product
- BlogMaker.app - Val's current SaaS
- FileInbox.com - Christian's SaaS
- Cursor - AI coding tool discussed in the episode
- Rails Components Library – Brian's new project
- Paddle - Payment processor Val mentioned for his new product
- Justin's MicroConf talk on founder-market fit
- Brett Victor - Human Computing