How to find your first 100 users without spending a dime

"If you had to grow a SaaS with $0 marketing budget, what's your first move?"

I see this question pop up constantly in founder communities.

"We've built this amazing product, but we don't have cash for ads. How do we get people to actually see it?"

"Everyone says 'just do content marketing' but what does that even mean practically?"

"I've been building in public for months but still have basically zero users..."

Most advice falls into these vague suggestions without the specific, actionable steps that actually work.

After reading this guide, you'll learn:

• A practical, step-by-step system to find and attract your first 100 users
• How to identify and engage in the right online communities (with examples)
• Specific tactics to create content that converts lurkers into users
• A 7-day action plan you can start implementing today

Finding your first 100 users without spending money comes down to one core principle: strategic positioning in places where your exact customers already hang out. Let me show you how.

1. Go where your potential users are already asking questions

Your first move? Find the digital watering holes where your exact users are already discussing their problems.

This means identifying:

• The subreddits where they ask questions
• The Discord servers where they seek help
• The Slack communities where they network
• The Twitter threads where they vent frustrations

But don't just join these spaces - study them like an anthropologist:

• What specific language patterns do they use to describe their problems?
• Which problems & pain points consistently trigger the most emotional responses?
• What solutions are they cobbling together that indicate a gap your product fills?
• Whenever you see a significant sounding words/phrases drop them into the search bar. How many more related posts or threads show up?

I've created a detailed guide on analyzing audience conversations on Reddit if you want to dive deeper into this approach.

2. Create hyper-specific content (forget SEO for now)

Take those common questions and create content that answers them thoroughly. I’m not talking about generic, SEO-stuffed blog posts trying to rank for competitive keywords, but laser-focused articles that solve specific problems your audience faces.

For example, if you've built project management software for agencies, don't write a generic post about "5 Project Management Tips." Instead, create a detailed guide titled exactly how your audience phrases their problem: "How to Prevent Scope Creep When Your Client Keeps Saying 'Just One More Small Change'."

The goal isn't ranking on Google – it's having the perfect resource to share when the right moment arises.

3. Become the helpful expert, not the pushy salesperson

Here's where most founders go wrong: they jump straight to promoting their product when they spot a relevant question.

Instead, follow this three-step approach:

1. Lead with substantial value: Provide a complete, actionable answer that would help them even if they never click your link or try your product.
2. Share your resource as an extension: "I actually wrote a detailed guide on this exact problem with templates you can use at [link]. It includes the approach I outlined above plus several other methods."
3. Subtly showcase your product in context: Within your article, demonstrate how your product solves their problem as part of a complete solution, not as a sales pitch.

This approach works because:

• You're providing immediate value (the helpful comment)
• You're offering deeper value (the article)
• You're contextually introducing your solution when they're actively seeking it
• Everyone else reading the thread with the same problem sees your solution too

The compound effect of strategic helpfulness

Here's an often-overlooked insight that makes this a killer tactic: the power of the invisible audience.

While you're responding to a single person's question, you're actually performing for three audiences:

1. The original poster who asked the question
2. Current lurkers silently reading the thread (often 10-100x more people than those posting)
3. Future searchers who will find this thread months or years later

This is why contextual relevance is so powerful. When someone is actively struggling with a problem your product solves, your solution becomes infinitely more valuable than any ad they might scroll past. You're not interrupting them; you're answering their call for help.

"But this seems so slow—I'm just helping one person at a time," you might think.

This is precisely the misconception that leads founders to abandon this approach too early. What they miss is the compounding nature of strategic helpfulness:

Your thoughtful response doesn't just reach the original poster; it reaches everyone with the same problem who finds that thread today, tomorrow, or years from now. This is where the compound effect kicks in.

Every helpful comment you leave:

• Builds your reputation as a trusted expert in the community
• Creates a permanent resource others can discover
• Positions your product as the natural solution to a specific problem
• Generates goodwill that makes people want to support you
• Leverages the exact moment when your solution is most relevant
• Reaches an invisible audience of lurkers with the same problem

The impact compounds exponentially. Consider:

• Day 1: You help 1 person, but 10 lurkers see your helpful response
• Week 1: You've helped 7 people directly, but reached 70+ lurkers
• Month 3: Your past answers continue working for you 24/7, with people discovering them through search
• Month 4: You've built a reputation as the go-to expert, and people start tagging you in relevant discussions

I've personally seen founders go from zero to their first 100 users in just 3 to 4 months using this approach, without spending a penny on ads or hiring marketers. Their "growth hack" was simply consistency and a genuine desire to help, not just promote.

It’s also the way that I have been growing this blog!

Your 7-day action plan: Start finding users today

Day 1 (Today):

Identify 3 online communities where your target users actively discuss their problems. Don't just choose the biggest ones—look for spaces with engaged discussions and specific problem-solving. Spend 30 minutes in each community saving posts that align with problems your product solves. Here's my guide on finding these communities.

Days 2-3:

Create a "Voice of Customer" database on an excel sheet. Copy and paste exact phrases people use when describing their problems. Note their emotional triggers, common objections, and the workarounds they're currently using. Here's my methodology for extracting these insights.

Day 4:

Create your first "perfect-fit" resource addressing the #1 pain point you've identified. This isn't just a blog post—it's a solution toolkit that includes:

• A step-by-step process they can follow immediately
• Templates or frameworks they can apply
• Common pitfalls to avoid
• A subtle demonstration of how your product makes this process even easier

Days 5-6:

Begin your "helpful expert" campaign by responding to at least 5 relevant questions per day. For each response:

• Provide a complete solution in your comment (don't make them click to get the answer)
• Only link to your resource as additional help, not as the primary answer
• Customize each response to the specific details in their question
• Follow up on any replies or clarifying questions

Day 7:

Analyze your first week's results:

• Which responses received the most upvotes or thanks?
• Which communities yielded the most engagement?
• What patterns emerge in the questions that resonated with your answers?
• How many people visited your resource, and how many converted to trying your product?

Use these insights to refine your approach for week 2, doubling down on the communities and question types that showed the most promise.

Remember, your goal isn't to reach thousands of people – it's to reach the right hundred people who truly need what you've built. Commit to this approach for 30 days, and you'll start seeing your first users trickle in without spending a dime on marketing.