1. Not doing enough market research

One of the most common mistakes that non-technical founders make is not doing enough market research. Before embarking on the development of your SaaS product, it is absolutely paramount that you have a thorough understanding of the current market landscape and the specific needs of your target customers. Without doing an adequate amount of market research, you run the risk of creating a product that does not meet the needs of your target customers or that isn’t in demand.

2. Not having a clear monetization plan

Another mistake that non-technical founders make is not having a clear monetization plan. It’s essential to have a strategy in place for how you plan on making money from your product, such as through subscription fees, one time payments, or advertising revenue. Without having a clear monetization plan in place, you run the risk of wasting time and resources on a product that may not generate any revenue.

3. Failing to develop an MVP

Non-technical founders often make the mistake of trying to create a fully featured and polished product right out of the gate. However, this can be an incredibly costly mistake as it often leads to wasted time and resources on features and functionality that may not even be necessary or desired by users. Instead, it’s best to start with an MVP (Minimum Viable Product) that you can quickly test with users to get feedback and determine which features should be developed further. This will help you save time and resources in the long run and ensure that your product meets the needs of your users.

4. Underestimating development costs
Developing a SaaS product can be incredibly expensive, with costs ranging from hosting fees to personnel costs for developers and designers. One mistake non-technical founders make is underestimating how much it will cost to develop their SaaS product, which can lead to serious financial difficulties down the road if they don’t have enough resources to complete their project. It’s important to have an accurate estimate of development costs before embarking on your project in order to ensure you have enough funds available to complete it.

5. Not having a beta test group
Before launching your SaaS product, it’s important to establish a beta test group in order to get feedback on your product and iron out any bugs or issues before launch. Without having this group in place, you run the risk of launching a product with serious issues or features that don’t meet user needs. Setting up a beta test group allows you to get feedback from users early on so that you can make any necessary changes before launch.

6. Not focusing on customer onboarding
Customer onboarding is an essential part of developing a successful SaaS product since it helps new users get up and running with your product quickly and easily. However, many non-technical founders overlook this important step and fail to develop an effective onboarding process for their users. This can lead to frustrated users who struggle to get started with your product, resulting in higher churn rates and lost potential customers. It’s important to dedicate time and resources towards developing an effective onboarding process so that new users can easily get started with your product right away.

7. Not having an effective customer support system
Finally, another mistake that non-technical founders make is not having an effective customer support system in place for their users. Without having this system in place, users may struggle to get help when they need it and may become frustrated with your product as a result. It’s important to invest time and resources into setting up an effective customer support system so that users can easily get help when they need it and remain satisfied with your product over time.

In conclusion, these are just seven of the many mistakes that non-technical founders should avoid when building their first SaaS product. By avoiding these mistakes, non-technical founders can ensure their product’s success by properly researching the market landscape, establishing a monetization plan, developing an MVP, accurately estimating development costs, setting up a beta test group, focusing on customer onboarding, and establishing an effective customer support system