Bootstrapped

When, if ever, should you, should make changes to your product's code that don't change its external behaviour? How do you weigh up the risks of breaking things against the ease of future development? Steve and Ed get way more technical than usual in this episode. We mention Refactoring , the book by Martin Fowler. We want listener questions! Post your question here and we'll discuss it in a futur...

We revisit the goals we made in January 2020. We consider what progress we've made despite the current massive global uncertainty. Back in January, in episode #124, Ed and Steve stated their goals for 2020 . Then COVID-19 happened, changing many of the assumptions we had when we made those goals. We’re open for listener questions! Got a topic or question you’d like us to discuss on the podcast? Le...

I openly report on the challenges and successes I've had in the first three months of owning Saber Feedback . And yes, I do reveal customer numbers, revenue, and traffic volume!  

This was a painful episode to record. I had problems getting some customers to pay. How I handled it was a cascade of mistakes. I tell Ed the story, and he gives me advice on what I should have done.  Ed tells us about his recent effort to add a once-off pricing plan to his SaaS. We also mentioned Ed's appearance on the Slow and Steady podcast, where he shared 25+ practical tips for running your S...

Ed chats with Peter Suhm about the challenges and rewards of selling to developers. Peter is the founder of Branch, a deployment tool for WordPress developers. Peter on twitter: https://twitter.com/petersuhm Branch: https://branchci.com WP Pusher, another product by Peter for WordPress developers: https://wppusher.com Out of Beta, Peter's podcast: https://outofbeta.fm   (recommended!) Discuss this...

We discuss Ed Freyfogle's recent experience creating the OpenCage Reverse Geocoding guide, an example of an "epic guide" approach to content marketing.  Useful links: The OpenCage Reverse Geocoding guide: https://opencagedata.com/reverse-geocoding Adam Duvander, who helped Ed create the guide: https://twitter.com/adamd Adam's company: https://everydeveloper.com/ Adam's personal site: http://www.ad...

Derrick's product is a direct competitor to one of my products. So it was extremely generous of him to speak openly about the challenges and successes of running PageProofer . We also discussed: the challenge of having many competitors having  years of work annihilated by one Steve Jobs announcement the challenge of separating personal life from work time when you are a solo founder. Discuss this...

Security audits! Bug bounty programs! Frequent unsolicited pen-testing! When you put a website on the Internet, it almost immediately faces non-stop security attacks. Ed and I discuss the ways we handle this within the resources available to us as bootstrappers. Thanks to EmailToolTester who sponsored this episode.  Find which email newsletter service actually reaches your customers with EmailTool...

Content specialist Hannah Adcock audited Saber Feedback's website . In this episode, she tells us what's good about our site and what needs to change. Hannah runs Contented Strategy . She was on the podcast a few months ago, when she talked about the benefit of a content audit. In this episode Hannah is way more specific. She tears down the Saber Feedback website, section by section. And then she...

Frequent guest co-host Ed Freyfogle has questions. Lots of questions. About why I acquired Saber Feedback , what the acquisition process was like, and what plans I have for Saber Feedback in the coming months. Thanks to EmailToolTester who sponsored this episode.  Find which email newsletter service actually reaches your customers with EmailToolTester’s deliverability report . Discuss this episode...

Matt Bearman, original founder of Saber Feedback, discusses the experience of creating, growing, and then selling Saber Feedback. Matt's Blog: https://mattbearman.svbtle.com/ The Google Ads PPC recommended by Matt: https://www.udemy.com/share/101XkgB0oZcFZUQHg= Thanks to EmailToolTester who sponsored this episode.  Find which email newsletter service actually reaches your customers with EmailToolT...

(Looking for Episode 131? For boring, technical reasons, there is no episode 131.) Ed Freyfogle and I discuss how COVID-19 is affecting our lives, our families, and our businesses. We also talk a little about my acquisition of Saber Feedback. Things we mention in the show: Geomob podcast Audience podcast Business of Software conference Saber Feedback Thanks to EmailToolTester who sponsored this ep...

A short episode where I explain why the podcast is on break for a few weeks. Spoiler alert: the pandemic has left me stranded 16,816 km from home. Until I find a way home, I can't easily record new episodes. Listen for the full story! Hopefully I'll be back with new episodes in a few weeks.  

Julian Wilde of Wormly describes how he was able to drive across central Asia - often in countries without easily-available Internet - while running a monitoring SaaS. We also reminisce about running a software company before Stripe, AWS and the Digital Nomad phenomenon. Thanks to EmailToolTester who sponsored this episode.  Find which email newsletter service actually reaches your customers with...

Bootstrapping is stressful. I share seven ways I try to manage the stress of being a software bootstrapper. Thanks to EmailToolTester who sponsored this episode.  Find which email newsletter service actually reaches your customers with EmailToolTester's deliverability report . Discuss this episode and more on our discussion forum for Bootstrappers .

We discuss some of the SaaS products we rely on to run our businesses: what they are and why we use them. Thanks to EmailToolTester who sponsored this episode.  Find which email newsletter service actually reaches your customers with EmailToolTester's deliverability report . Discuss this episode and more on our discussion forum for Bootstrappers .

When Dave Rodenbaugh wanted to run a software business, he decided to buy an existing one. He tells me why he did this, how he chose the business, and what he did right and wrong along the way. He also shares - painfully - his embarrassing $50K mistake. Dave runs Recapture and is co-host of the Rogue Startups podcast . Thanks to EmailToolTester who sponsored this episode.  Find which email newslet...

I'm joined again by frequent guest co-host Ed Freyfogle. We talk about how we track the spending on our businesses. We mentioned a rewards card for Startups from Cledara . Thanks to EmailToolTester who sponsored this episode.  Find the best email newsletter service for you with EmailToolTester's calculator . Discuss this episode and more on our discussion forum for Bootstrappers .  

Steve and Ed discuss what they hope to achieve by the end of 2020 - both professionally and personally. We also discuss the importance of knowing your non-goals, that is, things your explicit decide NOT to do. Thanks to Balsamiq who sponsored this episode. Bootstrapped listeners, to try Balsamiq for free, visit balsamiq.com/go/bootstrapped where you will find a promo code giving you an extended tr...

Courtenay Farquharson shares how he built up Parserr to more than $10K monthly revenue - and why he sold it. We also talk about: bootstrapping in the Microsoft ecosystem bootstrapping in Australia Courtenay on Twitter: https://twitter.com/courtzz Courtenay's next endeavour: sleepapp.com.au Thanks to Balsamiq who sponsored this episode. Bootstrapped listeners, to try Balsamiq for free, visit balsam...

Steve tells Ed all about the sale of his desktop app. We talked about why I sold off the desktop app I've been running for 12 years, how I found a purchaser, and the emotional ride of negotiating and handing over the app. Thanks to Balsamiq who sponsored this episode. Bootstrapped listeners, to try Balsamiq for free, visit balsamiq.com/go/bootstrapped where you will find a promo code giving you an...

Ed Freyfogle of OpenCage Geocoder and I (founder of Feature Upvote) discuss how we handle customer cancellation requests in our respective SaaS products. We discuss how we might do it differently. Thanks to Balsamiq who sponsored this episode. Find out how, thanks to Balsamiq, you can promote your bootstrapped business for free on the podcast . Our guest sponsor, courtesy of Balsamiq, is Vivid.fm...

Last week we heard Ed's top 5 habits for small teams. This week, Steve shares the habits he uses to keep his small team productive. Thanks to Balsamiq who sponsored this episode. Find out how, thanks to Balsamiq, you can promote your bootstrapped business for free on the podcast . Our guest sponsor, courtesy of Balsamiq, is Checkvist , the professional list making tool. Discuss this episode and mo...

Ed shares his top 5 habits he recommends for small bootstrapping teams, to keep your product as good as it should be. Thanks to Balsamiq who sponsored this episode. Find out how, thanks to Balsamiq, you can promote your bootstrapped business for free on the podcast . Our guest sponsor, courtesy of Balsamiq, is Mimiran , the CRM for people who hate selling. Discuss this episode and more on our disc...

Steve and Ed consider whether Freemium is a viable business model for bootstrappers. Thanks to Balsamiq who sponsored this episode. Find out how, thanks to Balsamiq, you can promote your bootstrapped business for free on the podcast . Our guest sponsor, courtesy of Balsamiq, is IvyBackup . Discuss this episode and more on our discussion forum for Bootstrappers .