Question
I've been so product-focused that I lost sight of sales. Now I can't afford product development even though we are rich with opportunity.
I'm failing at the balancing act. My SaaS product needs attention as do my customers and users. But it leaves me very little time for sales. I'm sure this is a common problem but I'm not sure how to best address it.
It's so problematic in fact that my developer is frustrated with the on-again-off-again nature of building this project out.
I'm bootstrapping, and the little sales we do have goes right back into development.
I can't say I'm a business developer, nor a sales guy, but I get out there and pitch a product I've been building with love for years so I've been able to last a few years. The product keeps getting better and better, and the feedback from customers and users has been wonderful. It's just me and a developer for hire (who also does love the project, but hasn't been interested in equity just yet). I feel this could be more, but don't know how to bridge the gap.
Answer
If you want to stay bootstrapped, your only source of financing is sales, and only sales. As much as you have to be focused on developing a product of value, you have to consistently be able to feed revenue into the business. Without sales, you're finished. If you can't afford a sales rep, you should wear the sales hat full-time until you scale enough for you to hire a dedicated sales rep. I would consider offering equity to the developer so he's more committed and invested. This requires another form of sales - not to your customers, but to your team members and employees. As a founder, you're always doing sales from every angle.
