john milton

After building Lovaround, I kept experimenting with small products around indie makers, distribution and new ways to launch things.

Today I launched a new one: AdSurface.

The idea is pretty simple: turn unused space in the Mac menu bar into an opt-in advertising surface.

Brands get a new placement to reach Mac users, while users who choose to display sponsors receive 70% of the ad revenue.

A few of you installed him on launch day and never touched him since. That's the point, but he's changed since then. Right click the plant, "Update", done.

What's new:

• He updates himself now.

• You can offer him to someone, with a note inside. Right click, "Offer a cutting". They get a link, the note opens when their plant sprouts.

• Fixed: when the plant ends up off screen, he comes back to the middle.

• Fixed: you can now park the plant against the edge, or slightly off screen, so he takes less room. The bubble follows him.

  If yours already says 0.2.15, you're good. Go pick who gets the first cutting.

Making a product is one big challenge. But shifting your mindset from building to marketing it might be an even bigger one.
As makers, we spend so much time improving the product. Then comes the question: How do we get people to discover it - and ultimately turn that attention into real customers and sales?
I'm not sure traditional approaches like email marketing and constantly posting on social media are enough anymore. The way people discover products is changing.
So I'm curious:

How do you approach marketing your product?
And for the marketers here:
What would you consider a modern marketing approach in 2026-2027? What would you advise an early-stage founder to focus on?
I'd love to hear different perspectives...