How to Build in Public - Tip Number 7 Will Blow Your Mind 🤯
SaaS Marketing7 min read
The ultimate guide to turning your startup journey into a marketing engine without spending a dime.
Too Long; Didn't Read
- Building in public (BIP) is the act of sharing your startup journey—wins, fails, and metrics—to build trust before you launch.
- Stop trying to be everywhere. Pick one medium (X, LinkedIn, or TikTok) and go all in to avoid setting yourself up for failure.
- You don't need a finished product. Share wireframes, code snippets, or revenue milestones to get early feedback.
- Tip #7: Consistency creates a 'human moat' that competitors can't copy. People buy into YOU, making failure almost impossible.
Why You Are Missing Out If You Don't Build in Public
Let’s be honest: we've gotten so complacent. Think about how difficult it would've been to market a product in a time when there was no internet. Can you imagine going from having access to everyone at your fingertips to trying to market a product with zero connectivity? Most of us would fall flat on our face! Yet, we take this access for granted.
Building in public is the perfect marketing and brand awareness move. You don't need anybody's permission, you don't need any money, and you can start with nothing. It is the ultimate hack that we have in 2026 to build a public project, and anybody not utilizing it is missing out.
This guide covers exactly how to build in public, from the mindset shift required to the tactical execution. If you follow these steps, you build something more valuable than just code: you build an audience that roots for your success.
Prerequisites: What You Need Before You Start
You do not need a completed SaaS product or a massive following. However, you do need these three things:
- A Project (or an Idea): You need something to build. This could be a micro app vs micro SaaS, or even just a concept you are fleshing out.
- Thick Skin: You will be sharing failures. You must be willing to look imperfect.
- One Social Account: Do not try to be everywhere initially. Pick one platform where your audience hangs out.
Step 1: The Mindset Shift (Mom vs. The Market)
Most people build in the dark because they fear judgment. They wait until the product is perfect before showing it to anyone. This is a fatal error in 2026. Building in public can be the difference between you building something successful, and you building something that nobody ever sees.
I'm sure your mum loves your app, but she's not going to make you a millionaire. And she certainly can't become your first 100 customers. Maybe she can tell her sisters and brothers and get your cousins to join your app, but chances are it's still not going to equal your first 100 customers. You need strangers to trust you. That trust comes from transparency.
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Launch Your AppStep 2: Choose Your Medium and Go All In
Building in public is you choosing a medium—like YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, or X (Twitter)—and owning it. There is no one platform to do it on, but there is a wrong way to do it: trying to do them all at once.
It's already a lot to build the thing. If you then have to show up everywhere consistently, you're setting yourself up for failure. Decide on a medium and go all in. If you are building B2B tools, LinkedIn is your best friend. If you are building visual tools for creators, look at TikTok or Instagram.
Actionable Task: Create a bio that states exactly what you are doing. Example: Building a CRM for dog walkers to $5k MRR. Sharing every step.
Troubleshooting: If you feel overwhelmed, cut your platforms down to just one. Consistency on one channel beats sporadic posting on four.
Step 3: Document, Don't Create
The biggest friction point is thinking you need to be a content creator. You don't. You just need to document what you are already doing. Did you fix a bug? Post it. Did you choose a tech stack? Explain why.
For example, if you are using Linear to manage your roadmap, take a screenshot of your backlog and explain which feature you prioritized and why. If you are coding with Lovable to speed up development, share a screen recording of the AI generating your UI. This is high-value content for other builders and potential users.
Troubleshooting: If you don't know what to post, simply share your startup costs breakdown. Financial transparency is the highest-performing content in the build-in-public community.
Step 4: Use Speed to Your Advantage
In 2026, speed is the new currency. The faster you ship, the more updates you have to share. Use tools that allow you to iterate publicly at lightning speed. Users love seeing a suggestion they made on Monday become a feature on Tuesday.
Leverage tools like Bolt.new or Replit Agent to prototype ideas instantly. When you share a video of yourself building a feature in 10 minutes using these tools, you prove competence and create excitement.
Stealth Mode vs. Building in Public
| Feature | Stealth Mode | Building in Public |
|---|---|---|
| Feedback Loop | None until launch day | Daily/Weekly from real users |
| Marketing Cost | High (Paid Ads) | Zero (Organic Reach) |
| Trust Factor | Low (Unknown entity) | High (Human connection) |
| Launch Day | Crickets | Existing audience ready to buy |
Step 5: The Feedback Loop (Engineering as Marketing)
When you build in public, your development process becomes your marketing. This is the core concept of engineering as marketing. Ask your audience for input on decisions. 'Should this button be blue or red?' 'Is this pricing model fair?'
Use tools like Productboard or Chisel to gather user insights and share those insights back to the community. It proves you are listening.
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Launch Your AppStep 6: Handle the 'Ugly' Moments
You will face downtime. You will lose customers. You will ship bugs. Share these moments. It sounds counterintuitive, but vulnerability builds authority. When you admit, 'We messed up, here is how we are fixing it,' you separate yourself from the faceless corporations that hide behind PR statements.
If you are using Mixpanel and notice a drop in retention, share the chart. Ask your audience why they think it happened. You might get free consulting from experts in your comments section.
Step 7: The Human Moat (Tip Number 7 Will Blow Your Mind)
Here is the insight that changes everything. Most people are scared of building in public because they're scared of failing. But they fail to realize that just by showing up, it's almost impossible for them to fail.
Why? Because people have bought into you as a human. Even if the product tanks, the audience you built remains with you. They will buy your next thing. Just by showing up every day, you are already miles ahead of the competition. Your chances of succeeding are far higher than anybody not doing what you're doing.
This is your moat. Competitors can copy your code using Softgen or v0 by Vercel, but they cannot copy the relationship you have built with your audience over months of daily updates.
Don't Start From Scratch
Check out our checklist to ensure you haven't missed a step in your public launch.
Get Free ChecklistPros
- • Zero cost marketing with high organic reach.
- • Rapid feedback loops prevent building things nobody wants.
- • Attracts investors and talent who see your progress.
- • Creates accountability to keep you shipping.
Cons
- • Requires thick skin to handle public criticism.
- • Competitors can see your strategy (though they can't copy your community).
- • Can be distracting if you focus more on 'likes' than code.
Pro Tip
Share revenue numbers (MRR) to go viral on X and LinkedIn.
Use screenshots and screen recordings; text-only posts perform worse.
Engage with others building in public; it is a reciprocal community.
Don't polish your content. Raw, authentic updates perform better than edited videos.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does building in public actually drive sales?
Yes. It creates a 'waiting list' effect. By the time you launch, your audience is already emotionally invested in your success. They want to buy because they watched it get built.
What if someone steals my idea?
Ideas are cheap; execution is everything. Building in public allows you to establish yourself as one of the thought leaders and someone of authority in a given space. If someone copies you, they look like a clone. Plus, you have the audience connection they lack.
How often should I post updates?
The way building in public works is you showing up every day. It doesn't have to be a massive blog post. A quick tweet about a bug fix or a LinkedIn poll about a feature is enough to maintain momentum.
Which platform is best for building in public in 2026?
For B2B SaaS, LinkedIn and X (Twitter) are the gold standards. For B2C or visual apps, TikTok and YouTube Shorts are dominating. Pick one and master it.
#Build in public#building in public
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