Back in late 2016, we launched HeadReach, a sales tool for lead generation. It's a SaaS that helps you find emails of people you want to sell to. Think of it as LinkedIn plus emails minus the high price tag.

Validating the Idea

Instead of building an application prototype, I decided to focus on customer interactions as the shortest way to gain knowledge and validate the riskiest hypothesis. A working software piece is not an MVP - it's a prototype. The shortest way to validate an idea is the route that generates the most learning.

The Concierge MVP

I made an outreach list manually for a friend's blog post. In exchange, I received the first testimonial. For the HeadReach MVP, we agreed that 20 paying customers in 2 weeks is a great validation result.

Early Results

• 7% conversion rate on the landing page
• 15 paying customers
• 20 lists purchased
• Around $400 in revenue

Growth and Exit

In 3 months we grew the product to a bit shy of $2,000 in MRR and a few thousand users. After technical difficulties with our data source, we eventually sold the HeadReach user base and marketing assets to LeadFuze.

• Total revenue generated: $18,453
• Total customers: 230
• Trial to customer CR: 3.15%