You don’t need a kajillion-dollar app.
You just need something that generates enough income for you to own all your time and do what you love and live freely.
For most people out there $10,000 monthly recurring revenue from a SaaS is gonna be a fantastic way to achieve this.
It can take serious dedication and effort but it’s a perfectly achievable goal.
You just the right idea that actually solves a problem for the right audience, and proper marketing.
Five proven strategies with real-world examples to help you uncover a profitable SaaS idea that has the potential to hit that $10K MRR mark:
1. Solve your own pain points (or those of your network)
Look inwards.
What frustrations do you encounter in your daily work or personal life? Are there repetitive tasks you wish could be automated?
This person built a simple SaaS tool to save a major problem they had as a marketer:
Is there a process in your daily life that’s unnecessarily complex?
How it works:
- Personal Experience: Think about tools you use regularly. What are their shortcomings? What features are missing? Have you ever thought, “There has to be a better way to do this?” That “better way” could be your SaaS idea.
- Professional Network: Talk to colleagues, friends, and contacts in different industries. Ask them about their biggest headaches and inefficiencies. Often, people outside of tech don’t realize their problems can be solved with software, creating a prime opportunity for you.
Why it leads to $10K MRR: If you experience a pain point, chances are others do too. Solving a problem you deeply understand gives you an inherent advantage in building a truly useful product and marketing it effectively. Niche down from your broad experience. For example, if you find popular analytics tools too complex, you can build niche web analytics tool for small businesses.
2. Deep dive into niche communities and forums
The internet is a goldmine of unmet needs and frustrations, especially within online communities. People are constantly discussing problems, asking for solutions, and venting about inadequate tools.
This solo software engineer got the crucial initial audience for their app just by posting on Reddit:
How it works:
- Reddit, Facebook Groups, Industry Forums: Join subreddits, Facebook groups, and specialized forums related to specific industries or hobbies. Look for recurring questions, complaints, and discussions around “what software would help with X?” or “I’m tired of using Y for Z.”
- Product Review Sites: Sites like G2 and Capterra offer insights into existing software solutions. Look at negative reviews and identify common pain points users experience with current offerings. This can reveal gaps in the market.
Why it leads to $10K MRR: These communities represent an audience with a shared, urgent problem. By observing their discussions, you can pinpoint specific pain points and tailor a solution directly to their needs. A micro-SaaS targeting a niche audience that genuinely needs your solution is often more successful than a broad tool trying to serve everyone.
3. Improve upon existing (but flawed) solutions
You don’t always need to invent something entirely new. Sometimes, the most profitable ideas come from taking an existing product and making it significantly better for a specific segment, or addressing its major flaws.
How it works:
- Competitor Analysis: Identify successful SaaS products in various categories. Then, analyze their weaknesses. Are they too expensive? Too complex? Lacking a crucial feature? Do they serve a broad audience but miss the specific needs of a smaller, valuable niche?
- “Niche Down” the Giants: Large SaaS companies often cater to a wide audience, which means they can’t perfectly serve every niche. You can build a more specialized, user-friendly, or cost-effective alternative for a particular segment. For example, instead of a general website builder, create one specifically for wedding photographers or local bakeries.
Why it leads to $10K MRR: Competition validates a market exists. By offering a superior experience or a more tailored solution to an existing demand, you can capture a portion of that market and quickly gain traction. Focus on solving one problem exceptionally well for a defined audience.
4. Leverage emerging technologies (especially AI)
Every now and then a major technology breakthrough happens that opens up a world of opportunity for new IT tools including apps and software.
It happened with the Internet, mobile and app store, and recently it’s been happening with AI.
Not only do you get to build AI-powered tools, you get use AI in your development and ship your MVP much faster.
How it works:
- AI Integration: The rise of AI and machine learning presents immense opportunities. How can AI automate tedious tasks, provide predictive insights, or personalize experiences within a specific industry? Think about AI-powered content optimization tools, AI SEO generators, or AI for video creation.
- No-Code/Low-Code Tools: The increasing accessibility of no-code and low-code platforms means you can build and test SaaS ideas much faster and with less technical expertise. This significantly lowers the barrier to entry and allows for rapid iteration.
Why it leads to $10K MRR: Early adoption of emerging technologies can give you a significant competitive advantage. If you can build a solution that leverages these advancements to provide unique value, you’ll be well-positioned to attract early adopters and grow quickly.
5. Look for manual workarounds and “frankenstein” solutions
When people are solving a problem using a combination of spreadsheets, manual processes, and disparate tools, it’s a strong indicator of an unmet need that software could address.
This is what drove the creation of tools like Notion and ClickUp
How it works:
- Observe Inefficiencies: Pay attention to situations where businesses or individuals are using clunky, manual workarounds to accomplish a task. This could be anything from managing orders with paper slips to using multiple free tools to cobble together a “solution.”
- Identify Integration Gaps: Are people manually transferring data between different software programs? Are they performing repetitive copy-pasting tasks? A SaaS that integrates these disparate workflows or automates data transfer can be incredibly valuable.
Why it leads to $10K MRR: These “Frankenstein” solutions highlight a painful problem for which people are already expending time, effort, or even money.
Your SaaS can offer a streamlined, efficient, and often more affordable alternative, providing clear ROI and a strong incentive for adoption.
Beyond the Idea: Validation is Key
Once you have an idea, the next crucial step is rigorous validation. Talk to at least 5-10 potential customers in your target niche. Ask them about their current workflow, their biggest challenges, and what they would pay for a solution.
Don’t just ask if they “like” your idea; ask if they would pay for it and how much. Pre-selling before you build can be a powerful way to validate demand and secure initial revenue.
By focusing on real problems, understanding your niche deeply, and validating your assumptions, you’ll significantly increase your chances of building a SaaS that not only serves its users but also generates a healthy $10,000 per month.