How I got my first paying SaaS customer in a boring niche

July 18, 2025

3 min read

How I turned a stagnant product into my first revenue-generating SaaS by refining the offer, talking to real users, and running targeted ads.

Giving my niche SaaS another shot

Some time ago, I wrote about my first SaaS product, built for Polish construction machinery companies. People were praising the idea, but nobody wanted to use it long-term. That’s when I realized: if no one’s paying, maybe it’s just not that useful.

A talk with someone from the industry

Since then, I’ve been learning a ton about sales and marketing. Eventually, I decided to give the project one more shot.

I reached out to a friend who works at a company that could be my ideal client. I asked about their internal processes, frustrations, and daily issues—and then showed him the app.

It turned out: their operations are full of chaos and miscommunication. My app could reduce most of that mess and make the lives of both dispatchers and machine operators much easier.

The next day, he messaged me again: he’d shown the app to his colleagues at work, and they were impressed too.

Running Facebook ads

At that moment, I realized I had given up way too early. I was naïve to think people from this niche would just magically find my site and register.

The Polish construction industry isn’t a sexy, fast-moving space like online courses or marketing tools. Good products don’t go viral here. You have to talk to customers and build relationships.

So I launched a Facebook ad campaign with a 1500 PLN (~$400) budget.

The result?
Over 10 registrations, a few solid conversations with genuinely interested people, and...

My first paying customer

One user told me:

“If you can deliver just a few small features, I’ll gladly pay. That’ll make it truly better than Excel.”

So I spent the next two weeks building what he needed.

And then it happened — my first payment came through.

He’s now actively using the app, happy with the updates, and giving feedback that helps me improve the product.

💡 Lesson learned: A user who pays and shapes your roadmap with real-world input is startup gold.

What’s next?

I’m still working on acquiring more customers. Like I said, the Polish construction tech scene is way behind when it comes to digitalization, so it’s a tough nut to crack.

And right now it’s summer, meaning companies are busy with nonstop work—no time for testing new tools.

I’m in touch with several firms who asked me to circle back in autumn when things calm down. So for now:

• I’m focusing on content marketing with a pillar-cluster strategy to generate organic traffic.
• I’m publishing useful posts every now and then.
• And in parallel, I’m building other startup ideas from my list — this time for a global audience 🚀