By Dario Cavallaro · Published · Updated
How to Build an Audience Before Your Product Is Ready
The instinct at the start is to stay heads-down on the product and only market it when it’s “ready.” Starting useful conversations earlier can help you understand the problem and reach people who care about it. Build that connection while you develop the product, at a pace you can maintain. Interest gives you something to investigate; it does not guarantee sales.
An audience is a distribution channel
Think of an audience the way you’d think of any channel: it takes time to build, and it’s most valuable once it’s established. Content posted now is what can help build an audience you can learn from. Track questions, relevant sign-ups and purchase behaviour separately from follower growth. Starting early is useful when it supports product learning rather than replacing it.
Post the thesis, not the product
The mistake founders make is posting about a product before anyone has a reason to care about it. An unfinished product may be interesting when the problem and the work are clear. One way to explain that is a thesis — the belief about your market that led you to build in the first place. Share the problem, your perspective on it, and what you’re learning. People who respond to the thesis may be potential buyers. Check whether the offer solves their problem, at a price and time that work for them.
Build in public while you build
The build itself is content. Sharing the real decisions and reasoning as you go — building in public — gives you something to post that’s genuinely interesting and earns trust at the same time. You’re not waiting for a finished thing to talk about; the process is the material.
The honest version
Start with a small amount of useful content and direct product feedback. Share your thesis and the build while testing what people actually need. Keep audience growth, expressions of interest and confirmed purchases as separate signals.
Frequently asked questions
Should I build an audience before launching my product?
Start early if it fits your capacity. Sharing useful work can help you learn who cares about the problem before launch. Followers and interest are not purchase commitments: validate demand with conversations, trials or real orders.
What do I post if my product isn’t ready?
Post your thesis, not your product — the belief about your market that led you to build. Share the problem, your perspective on it, and what you’re learning. People follow a point of view long before they’ll follow a product.
Isn’t it better to focus on the product first?
Product work and audience research can run alongside each other. Share a manageable amount of useful work while testing the product with potential buyers. Neither a large audience nor constant posting is a prerequisite for launching.