AI Founders

First-time founder here. I've built the entire product from scratch. Now I have no idea how to get customer #1

I understand the basic flow: product → ICP → prospects → outreach → calls → close.

But what does this actually look like at 0 → 1?

I’ve built a developer tool in the observability space, so my target users are developers and engineering teams. The product is built, but now I’m trying to figure out the most practical way to get customer #1.

The general advice around this usually involves a lot of expensive GTM tools, which frankly I don’t think I need at this point.

I’d love to hear from founders who are currently at a similar stage:

What tools, channels, or tactics are you actually using to land your first few customers?

Looking specifically for practical 0 → 1 GTM advice, rather than a long list of tools I should buy.

Add your perspective

Comments (5)

Pradyut Chakraborty1mo

At 0→1, I would resist building a “GTM machine” too early. For the first customer, I’d go much narrower: identify 20–30 engineering teams where the observability problem is already painful, speak directly with the people experiencing it, and use those conversations to sharpen the ICP and buying trigger.

The first customer is less about outreach volume and more about finding one specific problem where the product can demonstrate measurable value quickly. Once you have 2–3 customers with a repeat

Tarak Sonkar5d

Target your audience not the rest

Rohan Mehta1mo

simple outreach can work better than using too many tools

Ananya Verma1mo

this is a common challenge for first time founders

Aarav Sharma1mo

getting customer #1 without expensive tools is a real challenge