Sofia DM'd 200 potential users. Two replied: one wasn't interested; the other pitched her his own SaaS — a better pitch than hers — and she became a paying user of it.
01The problem
Find first users for a new product through direct outreach.
02The experiment
She sent direct messages to 200 potential users. Two replied. One wasn't interested; the other turned the conversation around and pitched his own SaaS, which she ended up paying for.
03Results
| Metric | Result |
|---|---|
| DMs sent | 200 |
| Replies | 2 |
| Users wonone reply wasn't interested; the other pitched her | 0 |
| Spend | Not disclosed |
“Not disclosed” means the source doesn't say. We never estimate or fill in missing numbers.
04What worked — and what didn't
What didn't work
- 200 cold DMs: 2 replies, 0 users
05Lessons
The reply that did come was a lesson in pitching: the other founder's pitch was better than hers.
“Cold outreach works, just not the way I planned.”
06Source & evidence
- View original
Originally shared on X · Sep 20, 2026
I DM'd 200 potential users
Public source. Extracted from publicly available content by the founder.
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