Some of them got a few users, but they never made money. I kept running into the same issue: I was building without knowing if people actually wanted what I was making.
My latest project is different :)
I launched my project (bigideasdb.com) 7 months ago, and it made $18,000 in revenue within that time. My most successful product by far.
Here's what I did differently this time:
1. Building a habit of collecting problems
I created a habit of constantly writing down problems and pain points, whether it was something I personally experienced or something I saw others struggle with online.
I use a simple notes system on my phone and just add problems whenever something clicks.
When it came time to build a new project, I had dozens of validated problems to choose from. Most weren't great, but a few stood out. BigIdeasDB was one of them.
2. Validating before building anything
This was the biggest difference-maker.
Instead of immediately building the product, I spent time figuring out if it was something others would actually pay for.
I shared the idea on Reddit and Twitter, reached out to founders, and asked questions like:
Do you struggle to find good product ideas?
Would you use a database of validated problems scraped from real sources like Reddit, G2, and Upwork?
How much would you pay for something like this?
The responses were overwhelmingly positive. That gave me the confidence to move forward.
3. Listening to users religiously
Once I launched the MVP, I stayed close to my users. I asked them:
What's missing from the platform?
What would help you find better problems to solve?
What features would make you upgrade?
This approach made it so much easier to know what to build next. I didn't waste time guessing, I just built what users asked for.
4. Obsessing over metrics
I started tracking everything: website conversion rates, user activation behavior, and upgrade funnels.
I could see exactly:
How many visitors converted to users
How many of those became paying customers
What actions made people more likely to convert
For example, my landing page was only converting at around 4% early on. I focused on improving that, and after testing different headlines and features, I got it to 9%, which directly doubled my revenue.
5. Focusing on real problems with buying intent
Instead of just collecting random complaints, I focused on problems where people were already spending money or actively looking for solutions.
G2 reviews showed me what paying customers hated about existing tools. Upwork job listings revealed what companies were struggling to hire help for. Reddit posts highlighted frustrations people were venting about daily.
These weren't just problems, they were validated market opportunities.
TL;DR
I had to fail multiple times before I figured out how to build something people actually wanted.
The biggest change this time was validating the idea early, but combining that with real user feedback, clear metrics, and focusing on problems with proven buying intent made everything easier.
If you're still trying to get your first win, don't give up. Build small, talk to users, and make sure you're solving something real that people are already paying to fix.