charli decouze

When I launched my first paid tool, I set the price at $5 a month because anything higher felt like I d scare people away. It took me almost a year to realize the people paying $5 were the ones emailing support the most, and the few who would have happily paid $30 never thought it was a serious product.

I raised prices earlier this year and lost a couple of users, but revenue went up and, oddly, the complaints went down. I still feel a little guilty every time I look at the pricing page, though.

I ve noticed two patterns with makers I talk to:

1. People who start cheap to get traction and then struggle for months to raise prices without upsetting early users.

2. People who charge more from day one, get fewer signups, but end up with customers who actually stick around.

A couple of years ago, sharing revenue numbers and progress updates on X felt like a cheat code. Now my feed is full of Day 47 of building my SaaS posts, and I m not sure anyone is reading them anymore, including me.

I ve been posting updates, and it s brought honest result, e.g. some founder friends, but very few actual customers.

Has building in public brought you real customers, or mostly other builders?

If you still do it, what kind of posts actually get traction for you?

A. "Gorgeous little spot in Silver Lake. Great pastries, lovely place to sit"

B. "Order the 12oz, not the 16oz. Pistachio milk and no sweetener. Go before 9am or you won't get a seat."

Which one actually makes you go? And what is it about a recommendation in general that makes you trust it?