Danny Postma has become a well-known name in the world of indie hacking, bootstrapping, and selling several successful startups like Headlime.
In this article, we'll closely examine Danny's journey to becoming a prolific founder, break down the strategies he used to build and grow Headlime, and highlight key lessons that helped him sell this startup for over $1 million in just 8 short months.
Whether you're looking to start your own SaaS tool or already run your own bootstrapped business, Danny's approach contains many insights and growth tactics you can apply. Let's dive in!
Danny Postma
Who is Danny Postma and How Did He Get Started?
Originally from the Netherlands, Danny Postma is now based in Bali and runs a portfolio of over 20 startups under his holding company Postcrafts. However, his diverse background gave him a solid foundation before pursuing indie hacking full-time.
Prior to focusing entirely on his own ventures, Danny honed his skills in design, development, and digital marketing through freelance work. He helped clients optimize conversion funnels and landing pages to boost results.
This combination of expertise in UI/UX, coding, and online optimization made him uniquely equipped to not just ideate new SaaS tools but also market them effectively. Danny has been continuously immersed in the world of indie hacking since the young age of 16.
Given his early start and long runway, it's no wonder Danny was able to iteratively build and validate so many ideas. By the time he started Headlime, he already had nearly 6 years of startup experience under his belt.
An Early Start with Side Hustles
Like many prolific founders, Headlime wasn't Danny's first rodeo. Even before tackling startups, he experimented with smaller side hustles.
One amusing example was trying his hand at stock photography in the early days. Danny contributed free photos to Unsplash, a popular stock image site, even getting featured in their editorial selection at one point.
Of course, stock media wasn't scalable or lucrative enough to be more than a side gig. But this shows Danny's continuous drive to create value and try new projects, even on a micro-scale.
His Startups and Projects
While we'll focus mostly on Headlime in this article, it's worth noting some of Danny's other notable startups over the years.
Some of his current products include:
He continues to ideate and release new projects at a rapid pace. In total, Danny estimates he has worked on over 20 startups under Postcrafts so far in his career.
Now let's examine his breakthrough startup Headlime and how Danny managed to build, grow, and sell it within a matter of months.
Where the Idea for Headlime Originated
Like many great business ideas, Headlime didn't arise out of thin air. Danny already possessed specific assets and knowledge he could repurpose into a new offering.
The original concept stemmed from a simple $19 headline generator eBook Danny had previously created with a friend. While a small digital book served a purpose, he realized converting this idea into software-as-a-service (SaaS) had much more upside potential.
His core hypothesis was taking the one-time $19 sale from the eBook and transforming it into an ongoing revenue stream through subscriptions. This form of pivoting is a common tactic used by savvy founders when they identify an existing product with untapped potential in another format.
To validate the SaaS idea before diving headfirst into building it, Danny ran quick tests:
- He posted a preview landing page for Headlime on Twitter and rapidly received over 80 signups for the waitlist in a single day.
- He later launched it on Product Hunt where it got over $400 in sales immediately.
- This initial traction signaled that Headlime showed promise. The market was responding positively right out the gate, so Danny kept moving forward.
Crafting the Right Business Model
In addition to the core idea itself, structuring an attractive business model is crucial for any new SaaS venture. This is especially important when bootstrapping a startup on your own.
Let's examine Danny's pricing strategy and funnel setup for Headlime that ultimately helped drive its growth.
Pricing Strategy
For new products with questionable product-market fit, it can be risky to only offer monthly subscriptions upfront before validation.
Instead, Danny smartly leveraged a tiered lifetime deal pricing structure when first launching Headlime on Product Hunt. This helped incentivize early adopters to take the plunge.
His initial pricing on launch day offered:
- First 200 units at $49
- Next 200 units at $89
- Final 200 units at $129
Not only did the limited quantity batches impose scarcity, but the pricing ladder attracted early buyers who didn't want to miss out on the lowest price.
Once Headlime gained traction, Danny gradually transitioned to a subscription-based model. This allowed him to continue monetizing the growing user base he accumulated through the lifetime deals.
According to Danny, his costs to deliver Headlime were minimal, likely under $9 per month per user. However, today Headlime's pricing has increased significantly based on market appetite:
- Personal plan: $59/month
- Enterprise plan: $399/month
Raising prices over time as you better understand product-market fit and customer demand is key to maximizing SaaS profitability.
Optimizing the Funnel Experience
You need more than just a competitive pricing strategy to convert and retain users. That's why Danny meticulously designed Headlime's onboarding flows and in-app experiences to encourage upgrades.
Some examples of how he optimized the funnel:
- After registering, users immediately see an upgrade offer box prominently on the dashboard. Difficult to miss.
- Higher plan features are highlighted and positioned as "New and Improved!" or "Most Popular" to spur upgrades.
- Special discount modals are displayed when the user hits usage limits or after a certain time period. Limited-time offers create urgency.
This funnel approach helps seamlessly guide customers from free to paid plans, while also incentivizing existing paying users to upgrade to higher tiers.
Growth Strategies that Drove Headlime's Traction
Pricing and funnel optimization are integral parts of the equation. But growth is what determines whether a new startup sinks or swims. So how did Danny acquire Headlime's initial users?
He focused primarily on referrals and building social proof among relevant communities related to the product's purpose. Let's explore the channels and tactics he leveraged to get the word out.
- Tapping into Facebook Groups
Danny largely attributed his early traction to Facebook Groups. He actively participated in Group discussions around topics like landing page optimization, digital marketing, and SaaS. But he didn't merely post direct promotional links to Headlime. That's often frowned upon.
Instead, Danny aimed to provide value to group members by sharing educational tips or responding to questions. Then he'd mention Headlime organically if relevant, rather than force it.
The goal was to build goodwill and get others to willingly share or talk about Headlime, which helped drive referral traffic and social proof. This indirect approach proved highly effective.
- Ranking for Relevant Keywords
Because Danny selected a domain name for Headlime that accurately reflected the product's purpose, it started ranking for associated keywords like "Headline generator" fairly quickly. This allowed people actively searching for headline writing tools to organically find Headlime in Google and give it a try.
No expensive advertising is required. The domain name itself was a magnet for attracting the right audience.
- Leveraging Directories and Publications
To amplify Headlime beyond just social channels, Danny reached out to relevant directories and publications read by his target users.
He offered them exclusive tips and content in exchange for reviews of Headlime.
Examples of directories that ended up covering Headlime include:
The more mentions by external sites, the more Headlime benefited from backlinks, referral traffic, and credibility.
The TechCrunch Effect
Danny's biggest growth accelerator was getting covered by TechCrunch in March 2021.
Appearing on a highly reputable startup publication took Headlime's momentum into hyperdrive almost overnight. Danny said monthly recurring revenue doubled every 30 days after the TechCrunch article went live.
Although he didn't pitch TechCrunch directly, the contributor likely discovered Headlime organically through Danny's group outreach or browsing related directories.
This exemplifies the compounding effects of building social proof and an audience over time. You never know which mention will be your big break, so it pays to build community consistently.
Headlime was so good that we at Partnerkin noticed it and also included it in our article on GPT-3 tools back in 2021.
Referrals Continued Driving Growth
To this day, nearly 50% of Headlime's monthly traffic comes from referrals according to SimilarWeb data. The compounding effects from their early referral-focused strategy keep paying dividends.
Directories remain Headlime's #1 referral source, demonstrating the lasting power of getting listed by industry authorities.
This traffic likely comes from both readers organically discovering Headlime on the directories, as well as writers adding Headlime to updated lists based on its growing reputation.
Selling Headlime for 7 Figures
Within 8 months of Headlime's launch, Danny had grown the startup to $20,000 in MRR. Operating as a solopreneur, he was stretched thin trying to handle everything from product development to customer support.
He explored raising VC funding to scale Headlime, even having conversations with big firms like Andreessen Horowitz and Sequoia.
Ultimately, Danny received an acquisition offer from Conversion.ai and he felt comfortable accepting it. This allowed him to offload day-to-day operations while reaping the rewards of his hard work.
While full deal terms remain confidential, comparable SaaS sales typically range from 2.5x to 5x ARR (annual recurring revenue). At 4x ARR, Headlime's sale price would land right around $1 million.
For bootstrapped and solo founders, M&A can serve as a profitable exit once growing pains kick in. Danny had built the business to an impressive point where acquisition made strategic sense.
Due Diligence and Deal Process
Acquisitions take many months to finalize in private equity investing. But for solo bootstrappers, the M&A process is far more streamlined. Danny handled buyer due diligence by providing requested details and screenshots in a shared Notion doc. Lawyers weren't needed to negotiate terms.
This allowed the acquisition process to complete fairly quickly within 1-2 weeks.
Building in Public Attracts Buyers
A major reason Danny likely captured acquisition interest so swiftly is he built Headlime completely in public.
By sharing his journey transparently on social media, it essentially served as free marketing to prospective buyers. They could see all the traction and stats without any outbound sales pitches needed.
Building an audience and updating progress publicly is a genius way to organically get on buyers' radars. An asset purchasers can verify has tangible value.
Danny's Digital Product Strategy
For indie hackers looking to build a suite of products over time like Danny, his framework for identifying new ideas and launching startups faster is helpful to understand.
- Find Growing, Evergreen Niches
Don't zig-zag between totally different venture concepts. Danny believes founders are most effective in staying within one broader niche.
That way you become known as a thought leader in that space, and each new product builds on your existing audience.
For example, Danny operates heavily in the artificial intelligence (AI) arena with startups like Headlime, HeadshotPRO, and ProfilePictureAI. He can leverage his AI expertise across products.
- Dig into Keyword Research
Once you've chosen a niche, Danny suggests using keyword research to uncover gaping holes begging for solutions. Rather than ideate from scratch, look at search volume for terms people are already seeking answers for. This signals opportunities to build tools to resolve those needs.
Ahrefs, SEMrush, and Keywordtool.io can reveal keyword demand data. Or for a free alternative, try Google's Keyword Planner.
- Target Low-Competition Keywords
Don't go after crypto trading bots just because it has a high search volume. As a newer site, you'll struggle to rank against established brands.
Instead, Danny filters for mid to long-tail keywords with low SEO difficulty scores and minimal competing domains. This allows new sites to rank much faster.
For example, "professional headshots" have low competition compared to just "headshots". Danny built HeadshotPRO to target such longer-tailored keywords.
- Create a Site Matching Search Intent
With a focused keyword identified, ensure your startup's name and domain aligns closely to the search intent. HeadshotPRO conveys precisely what the site offers. This instantly signals relevance to prospective visitors.
Having a domain matching the keyword also helps with ranking efforts. Google interprets an exact match as more relevant.
Even following this framework, some products won't gain traction. When that happens, Danny advises not to dwell on it.
"I got lucky my 4th startup was the winner. Some people have to build more than 10 before they find the perfect product."
Many of Danny’s projects are iterations of each other:
- AI copywriting: LandingFolio → eBook → Headlime
- AI photography: Tattoo AI → Stock AI → Profile Picture AI → HeadshotPRO
He suggests tweaking variables like the niche, keywords, pricing, and marketing channels across many iterations until product-market fit is achieved. Rapid experimentation is key to replicating success consistently over many startups.
Key Takeaways from Danny Postma's Journey
If you want to emulate Danny's strategy used to build and sell SaaS startups in a year or two, here are the key tactics to focus on:
- Convert existing assets into new digital products to jumpstart ideas, like Danny's pivot from an eBook to SaaS
- Validate product concepts quickly by running landing page tests and offering limited deals
- Structure pricing creatively, like Danny's tiered lifetime offer for early momentum
- Funnel new users seamlessly from free to paid plans
- Build community and an audience by actively participating in relevant niche groups
- Produce valuable content to get featured on directories and niche publications
- Stay the course to increase the chance of a hit product, and don't get discouraged by failures
- Consider an acquisition exit once you've achieved significant organic traction and growth
- Share your startup journey publicly to attract potential buyers and investors
- Build a suite of products within a broader niche over time and keep innovating and improving them.
- Use keyword research to identify promising new product opportunities efficiently
Danny Postma provides an inspirational case study of how smart founders can build, validate, and even exit startup ventures rapidly by executing the right strategies. For solopreneurs who want to skip wasting years of subpar results, studying the playbook of proven winners like Danny is the winning shortcut to success.
