Trial to Paid – SaaS Journeys to $1K MRR and Beyond

Rob Morgan
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Early stage SaaS founders tell their unvarnished stories of how they clawed their way to $1k MRR. What worked, what didn't, how they stayed sane.

Episodes

  1. Shervin Koushan (AnyTracker): $800 MRR from 10K Freemium Users – Time to Experiment With Pricing?

    07/11/2025

    Shervin Koushan (AnyTracker): $800 MRR from 10K Freemium Users – Time to Experiment With Pricing?

    In this episode of the Trial to Paid podcast, Shervin Koushan discusses the development and success of his versatile app, AnyTracker, which allows users to track various metrics from any website. Shervin outlines his guiding principles for creating successful apps and shares how his personal coding journey from high school to studying robotics at university influenced his work. He highlights the app's broad appeal, user growth, and revenue model, while also touching on business challenges and future aspirations. Shervin emphasises the importance of continuous improvement, user feedback, and the potential to tap into new markets. The episode provides valuable insights for aspiring app developers and entrepreneurs. Chapters 00:00 Introduction and Welcome00:16 Guiding Principles for Building Products01:10 Shervin's Coding Journey02:52 The Creation of AnyTracker06:38 How AnyTracker Works10:49 Market and User Insights17:59 Business Model and Pricing18:53 Revenue Insights and Pricing Strategies19:43 Freemium Model and User Base21:20 Marketing Efforts and User Acquisition24:34 Lessons Learned and Future Plans28:11 Scaling and Monetization Goals30:31 Partnerships and Team Dynamics32:03 Balancing Day Job and Side Projects32:57 Final Thoughts and Advice for Founders Shervin's Links AnyTracker: https://anytracker.app LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/shervin-koushan-907917192/X: https://x.com/koushanshervinInstagram: https://instagram.com/_shervinkoushan_ Rob's Links Trial to Paid: https://trialtopaid.ioLinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/rbdmorganX: https://x.com/rbdmorgan ----- Music: "Nightfall" by OlexandrMusic (https://soundcloud.com/olexandrmusic)

    34 min
  2. Martin Rue (LangSesh): From Engineering Manager to Purpose-Driven SaaS Nomad

    07/02/2025

    Martin Rue (LangSesh): From Engineering Manager to Purpose-Driven SaaS Nomad

    In this episode of the Trial to Paid podcast, Rob Morgan welcomes Martin Rue, the founder of LangSesh, to discuss his journey from a lifelong passion for languages and software engineering to creating an innovative language learning tool. Martin shares his guiding principles for building products, the importance of honesty and doing meaningful work, and his unique path as a digital nomad in Southeast Asia. The conversation delves into LangSesh's development, including challenges, technological choices, and the essential feedback loop with users. Martin also emphasises the significance of aligning personal interests with entrepreneurial projects, fostering a fulfilling and sustainable work-life balance. This episode is packed with insights on innovation, user-centered design, and maintaining motivation in the startup world. Chapters 00:00 Welcome and Introduction00:17 Guiding Principles in Product Design01:06 The Importance of Helping Others02:31 Building for Yourself and Finding Your Market03:21 Discussing LangSesh03:49 Early Coding Journey08:14 The Fascination with Languages13:05 Discovering Esperanto20:03 Entrepreneurial Journey and Side Projects25:11 Challenges and Lessons Learned27:46 Transition to Digital Nomad Life31:49 Cutting Costs and Saving Time: Our Move to Vietnam33:32 Living Off Savings: The Reality of Our Journey35:11 The Ups and Downs of Life in Vietnam39:23 Introducing LangSesh: A New Language Learning Tool40:34 LangSesh Features and User Experience43:40 Challenges and Iterations: Improving LangSesh49:01 The Journey of Building LangSesh57:45 Validating and Launching LangSesh01:05:06 Feedback and Iteration01:06:13 Shipping Updates and Pricing Changes01:08:09 Challenges and Early Signals01:10:02 Marketing and Community Engagement01:14:24 Tech Stack and Development Philosophy01:19:53 Wins and Learnings01:26:13 Future Vision and Advice for Founders01:35:09 Final Thoughts and Contact Information Martin's Links LangSesh: https://langsesh.comLinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/martinrue/X: https://x.com/martinrue Rob's Links Trial to Paid: https://trialtopaid.ioLinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/rbdmorganX: https://x.com/rbdmorgan ----- Music: "Nightfall" by OlexandrMusic (https://soundcloud.com/olexandrmusic)

    1h 36m
  3. Jerad Maplethorpe (Hypertxt): From $3K to $2K MRR and Back Again – What I Learned From Churn

    06/25/2025

    Jerad Maplethorpe (Hypertxt): From $3K to $2K MRR and Back Again – What I Learned From Churn

    In this episode of the Trial to Paid podcast, Rob Morgan chats with Jerad Maplethorpe, founder of Hypertxt, an AI-driven SEO article writing tool. Jerad shares his journey from ideating and building projects to focusing on creating profitable businesses. He delves into his guiding principles, his background in writing and web development, and the evolution of Hypertext. The conversation covers the successes and challenges Jerad faced, including targeting the right audience, pricing strategies, and the importance of user feedback. Despite facing hurdles such as churn and shifting user behaviour, Jerad highlights his ongoing passion for building products and his current work on a new tool aimed at simplifying the creation of newsletters. The episode is packed with valuable insights for aspiring founders, especially those interested in bootstrapping and indie hacking. Chapters 00:00 Introduction and Welcoming Jerad00:18 Guiding Principles in Business01:19 Discussing SaaS Product Hypertext01:43 Jerad's Background and College Days03:12 Early Web Development and Projects05:12 First Successful Product: Narrow08:11 Challenges and Lessons Learned09:19 Introduction to Hypertext10:49 Target Audience and User Experience23:18 Validation and Market Fit25:58 Competitors and Market Position31:27 Business Progress and Future Plans39:42 Understanding Customer Profiles40:01 The Benefits of Structured AI Tools42:10 Challenges in Marketing and Conversion42:49 Initial Trials and Marketing Strategies46:38 Building and Iterating the Product50:39 Tech Stack and Development Insights52:28 Key Wins and Learning from Failures01:01:27 Future Plans and Philosophies01:07:45 Advice for Aspiring Founders Jerad's LinksHypertxt: https://hypertxt.aiNewsletterOps: https://newsletterops.aiLinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/maplethorpe/X: https://x.com/maplethorpej Rob's Links Trial to Paid: https://trialtopaid.ioLinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/rbdmorgan ----- Music: "Nightfall" by OlexandrMusic (https://soundcloud.com/olexandrmusic)

    1h 13m
  4. Mo Rassam (LiGo): From "Chief Failure Officer" to $5K MRR Helping B2B Teams Win on LinkedIn With AI

    06/19/2025

    Mo Rassam (LiGo): From "Chief Failure Officer" to $5K MRR Helping B2B Teams Win on LinkedIn With AI

    In this episode of the Trial to Paid podcast, Rob Morgan chats with Mo Rassam, co-founder of LiGo, about the journey of building and growing AI-powered products and businesses. Mo shares guiding principles that have helped in shaping his career and startups, particularly around leveraging AI for automation and maintaining lean operations. The conversation touches upon the inception of LiGo, a full-stack LinkedIn automation tool aimed at optimizing LinkedIn content for various user segments like founders, agency owners, and independent consultants. Mo also delves into the evolution of his programming passion, initial coding experiences, and his venture into artificial intelligence and product development. The episode covers the significance of rapid prototyping, validation processes, SEO strategies using AI, and the challenges of differentiating LiGo in a competitive market. Mo emphasizes the importance of starting early in the tech field, the necessity of building quality products, and effectively leveraging multiple acquisition channels including Medium and Reddit. Lastly, future aspirations for LiGo and the broader company vision are outlined, providing listeners with valuable insights into startup growth and AI integration. Chapters 00:00 Welcome and Introduction 00:14 Guiding Principles in Business 00:55 The Philosophy of AI in Business 02:54 Journey into Coding and Early Career 07:29 Founding Antimatter and Transition to LiGo 10:41 Developing LiGo: Challenges and Strategies 12:51 LiGo's Target Audience and Market Fit 15:58 Product Features and Compliance 24:49 Business Progress and Future Plans 30:26 SEO and User Acquisition Strategies 31:00 Addressing Customer Churn and Product Stickiness 33:24 Paid Acquisition Experiments 35:00 Building the MVP and Team Dynamics 38:55 Effective Marketing Channels 46:12 Challenges with LinkedIn 50:02 Future Goals and Vision 59:00 Advice for Aspiring Founders Mo's LinksLiGo: https://ligo.ertiqah.comLinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/muhammad-rassam/ Rob's Links Trial to Paid: https://trialtopaid.ioLinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/rbdmorgan ----- Music: "Nightfall" by OlexandrMusic (https://soundcloud.com/olexandrmusic)

    1h 2m
  5. Bill Yang (Rybbit): From “Too Dumb to Code” to $1.6K in 35 Days

    06/12/2025

    Bill Yang (Rybbit): From “Too Dumb to Code” to $1.6K in 35 Days

    In the very first episode of Trial to Paid, Rob Morgan chats with Bill Yang, the indie hacker behind Rybbit — a privacy-focused, open-source web analytics platform that hit $1.6K in revenue just 35 days after launch. Bill shares how he went from thinking he was “too dumb to code” in high school to building a high-traffic gaming analytics site (1.5M sessions/month) and then leveraging that experience to launch Rybbit. We dive into his origin story, why he chose open source, how he engineered a viral launch with zero ad spend, and what he’s learned along the way — including smart moves like embedding a live demo directly into his landing page. If you're into indie hacking, open source, or bootstrapping SaaS from scratch, this one’s packed with real talk and tactical insights. Chapters 00:00 Welcome to the Trial to Paid Podcast 00:21 Guiding Principles for Building Products 03:45 The Journey to Becoming a Coder 12:30 Early Entrepreneurial Ventures 14:24 Building Tomato.gg 19:10 Introducing Rybbit: A Google Analytics Alternative 23:36 Rybbit's Market Position and Competitors 28:18 Differentiating Through Design 29:18 Building the Marketing Site 30:08 Using AI Tools in Development 30:56 Launching the Product 33:10 Technical Stack and Frameworks 35:14 Open Source Strategy 42:50 Marketing and Promotion 50:12 Reflections and Future Plans 57:31 Advice for Aspiring Developers Bill's LinksRybbit: https://rybbit.ioTomato.gg: https://tomato.ggX: https://x.com/yang_frogLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-yang-/ Rob's Links Trial to Paid: https://trialtopaid.ioLinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/rbdmorgan ----- Music: "Nightfall" by OlexandrMusic (https://soundcloud.com/olexandrmusic)

    1 hr
  • 5 Episodes

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Early stage SaaS founders tell their unvarnished stories of how they clawed their way to $1k MRR. What worked, what didn't, how they stayed sane.

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