Booth Beam - Month 2

One-Line Summary #

Half the month was lost to injury, the other half proved people will care - if you catch them at the right moment.

Highlights #

This month was uneven, but still produced a few meaningful signals:

• Added media handling to the application, so users can now upload images to their slides
• Published release notes
• Published a new article on Software Witchcraft about pairing code design
• Ran 5 demos and found 3 companies willing to try the app in real scenarios
• Identified a concrete initial acquisition channel (targeted cold outreach to exhibitors)

Goals Grades #

At the start of each month, I declare what I’d like to accomplish. Here’s how I did against those goals:

Select and start 1 marketing strategy for Booth Beam

• Result: Cold emailing companies attending fairs in the next month
• Grade: B

I tested a few outreach angles and audiences, but most of them went nowhere. The breakthrough came when I narrowed the focus: companies actively preparing for fairs.

The idea is simple - find exhibitor lists, identify relevant companies, and reach out to their sales teams. Timing turned out to be the key variable, not the message itself.

This is the first approach that actually produced conversations.

It’s not scalable, but that’s not the point right now. As Paul Graham puts it, you have to “do things that don’t scale” in the early stages.

Find 5 beta testers and get their feedback

• Result: Found 3 companies willing to try the app
• Grade: C

I didn’t hit the number, but the quality is there.

Through personal contacts and outreach, I managed to run 5 demos. Out of those, 3 companies committed to trying the app in real-world scenarios, not just “checking it out.”

That matters more than raw numbers.

Create a short demo video of the app

• Result: Defined the demo scenario
• Grade: C

No finished video yet.

However, the demo calls were useful. They exposed what actually needs explaining, where users get confused, and what flow makes sense to present.

Instead of guessing, I now have a rough script grounded in real interactions. Execution moves to next month.

Booth Beam metrics #

Current product state #

This month didn’t start well.

My back seized up, and I was effectively out for the first half of the month. Most days were reduced to visiting a physician, doing light exercises, and resting. Work was minimal, and mentally it broke momentum.

I only resumed proper work in the second half.

Once I got back, the focus shifted heavily toward finding initial users. I went through several ideas, most of them too generic to work. Eventually, I landed on a much narrower approach: targeting companies that are about to exhibit at fairs.

That constraint changed everything.

In a short time, I found several potential users. Not a flood, but enough to confirm that the problem exists and that timing matters more than reach.

Cold outreach doesn’t scale, but at this stage it’s not supposed to. Early on, the goal isn’t efficiency - it’s learning and validation.

On the product side, development focused on improving onboarding, adding media handling, and increasing system stability, all summarized in the latest release notes.

You should approach leads at the right time #

One of the bigger mistakes this month was trying to generate interest in the wrong context.

I posted about Booth Beam in different groups and invited people to join the private beta. That effort produced nothing. No traction, no real conversations, no useful feedback.

The issue wasn’t visibility - it was timing.

If people don’t have the problem right now, they ignore you. Not because your solution is bad, but because it’s irrelevant at that moment.

For this product, the trigger is clear: an upcoming event.

If a company isn’t preparing for a fair in the next 30 days, they won’t care. If they are, they suddenly become open to simple, fast solutions.

After realizing this, I shifted the approach. Instead of broadcasting, I started targeting companies tied to specific upcoming fairs. I’ve already identified two large fairs happening in May, which will be the next focus.

Wrap up #

What got done? #

• Set up a demo scheduling page so people can easily book a walkthrough
• Ran initial demos and validated real-world interest
• Shipped meaningful product improvements (media + onboarding + stability)

Lessons learned #

• Timing beats reach—talk to people when the problem is real, not hypothetical
• Early-stage growth is about precision, not scale
• You don’t have a business until it can operate beyond you

Goals for next month #

• Make the app usable without my direct involvement (self-serve onboarding)
• Find more prospects and run at least 10 demos
• Set up a basic homepage that clearly explains the product