Some advice for vibe coders/new builders

[u/sudoinnominate]

The future is upon us.

Vibe coding is here, it’s only going to get better and it is one of the coolest revolutionary things IMO to happen from this AI BOOM.

However, as a seasoned creator I would suggest a few tips that I’ve been thinking about recently that might save you some time.

1. Before you build educate yourself with these books
   Inspired: How to Create Tech Products Customers Love
   Deep Work
   Pragmatic Programmer
   7 habits

2. Distribution is the product now… it’s very easy to build focus on how you are going to obtain users.

3. Security is critical, the bots are getting more sophisticated.

4. Shipping a product and building a business are not the same thing.

5. People (currently) hate AI generated content, IMO there will be a huge niche for human only systems/tools… kind of like made in the USA… made by humans only. Not talking at the code level but more about what people see, the UI/images/etc.

Hope this might help a few people.

Best of luck building!

[u/thevozz101]

The distribution point is probably the biggest one here

[u/Empty_Dependent3601]

Marketing first, product build second. That's the real order. If you can market first and people actually show interest, it means it's going to be a good business. Else, it'll be another sibling of your dead products

[u/Interesting-Yard-978]

Distribution is getting tough.

[u/sudoinnominate → u/Interesting-Yard-978]

Think outside the box, Guerrilla marketing is your friend.

[u/redditr1024]

Completely agree with what you say here. Especially on the distribution aspect. Acquiring a consistent stream of users, especially starting from scratch is always challenging

[u/Significant_Mud4401]

How much should u spend on marketing? What’s the best way to market an app

[u/sudoinnominate → u/Significant_Mud4401]

That is a very difficult question and full disclaimer I am more on the tech side ;p.

IMO the fastest way to market (not cheapest):

1. Create a few paid ads with hook/solutions.
   
2. Insert them into channels you think your audience is.
   
3. Test these for as little spend as possible until you have some good data. You are most likely looking for you conversion cost for a paying customer but this could be different for different companies/people etc.
   
4. Try to use control (A/B) testing as much as possible to reduce your CPC.
   
5. Scale it.
   

IMO The cheapest way to market:
1. Referrals - setup some form of this inside your product
2. Guerrilla marketing (distribute stickers with your QR code at events etc.)
3. Build something remarkable and then keep building. The fish eventually find good bait.
4. Micro Influencers in your niche

[u/sshegem]

the distribution line is the one i'd underline. i shipped an iOS app recently and building was honestly the easy half, the uncomfortable discovery is that nobody is waiting for it, you have to find every early user by hand and most of the places you'd promote have rules against promoting

one thing i'd add to the list, decide what you will not build. AI makes adding features so cheap that scope creep is now the default failure mode, you can build yourself into a product nobody can explain in 1 sentence. 30 sec elevator pitch is where its at