How do you get your first 100 users? Do discounts, lifetime deals, or free plans actually work?

I'm bootstrapping CrawlSpider, a SaaS tool that helps businesses track their visibility across AI assistants and Google Search Console.

The product is live, and now I'm facing a challenge many indie founders probably recognize: getting early traction.

Building the product is one thing. Getting people to discover it, try it, and eventually pay for it is a completely different challenge.

I'm exploring a few ways to attract early adopters:

• Free plan: Let users experience the product before upgrading.

• Launch discount: Offer 30–50% off for early customers.

• Lifetime deal (LTD): One-time payment for long-term access.

• Extended free trial: Give users more time to see the value.

• Early adopter pricing: Lock in a lower subscription price for founding customers.

For those who've launched SaaS products, what actually helped you get your first 100 users?

And from a buyer's perspective, which of these offers would genuinely motivate you to try a new tool?

I'm particularly curious whether lifetime deals still attract serious long-term users or mostly deal hunters.

Would love to hear what's worked (or hasn't) for other founders.