Launched 69 days ago. Added $925 MRR using SEO (with 0 backlinks )

Hi PH 👋

Just 69 days ago we launched our little no-code tool called Shipper (link to PH launch)

Ahrefs rates our new domain “3.5”.

But even with that... we added $925 MRR just from SEO.

Here's where we stand now:

💵 ARR: $13,800

👀 21,329 website visitors

🔍 2,777 search clicks

💰 $3,975 gross volume

👥 62 paid users

All of it organic, no backlinks and no ads.

Just intent-based content.

Here’s what actually worked (and what didn’t) 👇

_ _ _

1/ SEO with 0 backlinks

We only wrote content that targets people already looking to switch or fix something broken.

And somehow... so many of those posts started ranking #1 or high up on Google.

We also got quite a few Perplexity and ChatGPT features — without paying any “AI SEO” agencies.

We avoided listicles like “Best No-Code App Builders” or “Ultimate Guides.”

Those are impossible to rank for early and barely convert anyway.

(They also feel very 2018 SEO.)

Instead, we went for intent-rich topics like:

• “x alternative”

• “x not working”

• “x wasted credits”

• “how to do x in y for free”

• “how to remove x from y”

People searching these are ready to buy your product.

They’re frustrated, actively searching for a fix, and just want something that works.

If your article empathizes with their pain and offers a working solution (your product), you’ll convert them.

Put yourself in their shoes:

– They hit a wall using a competitor

– They Google the issue

– They find your post that actually understands their pain

– Your guide gives them clarity

– You naturally show how your tool fixes it

Why wouldn’t they convert?

2/ Find pain points first, write later

You don’t need spreadsheets full of keywords you’ll never cover.

Instead, go where your users hang out.

Join discords, subreddits, indie hacker communities, anywhere people talk.

And most importantly: read competitor roadmaps.

Every roadmap and feedback section is a goldmine of user frustration.

See what people complain about.

Fix that for them.

They’ll spread the word.

That’s literally what we did:

– Someone complained they can’t export code from Lovable → we made a guide about it and upsold Shipper.now at the end.

– Another person asked for a V0 alternative that allows longer prompts → we built that feature and wrote about it.

Most of our SEO traffic came from just listening.

3/ Write like a human

Write like you’re explaining it to a friend over coffee.

Short sentences.

Simple headings.

Answer the reader fast.

Then make it scannable and rich with structure so Google (and AI tools) can digest it easily:

– Headings

– Callout blocks

– Quotes

– Custom HTML for highlights

– Images / screenshots

– Small tables

And yes, you can use ChatGPT — but start with your own words first.

Write the core manually, then ask AI to clean it up.

People don’t want 2,000 words.

They just want to know if your product solves their problem.

The formula: [problem → solution → CTA]

Don’t oversell.

Let curiosity do the work.

4/ Conversion > clicks

We learned this fast: traffic doesn’t mean MRR.

Each article has just 1–3 clear CTAs. No more.

Something like:

“Try Shipper - it solves this exact issue, but 10x faster and simpler.”

We track which pages actually convert.

Some posts get 2k visits and 0 conversions.

Others get 100 visits and 5 paying users.

Volume ≠ revenue.

5/ Internal linking > backlinks

Every post links to at least 5 others.

If you don’t do this, your pages are basically dead ends.

Google can’t crawl them properly, and users can’t explore deeper.

We built a small web of interconnected guides, instead of random standalone posts.

That alone improved both rankings and conversions.

6/ What didn’t work

– Generic listicles (“top 10 AI tools”) → no conversions

– Backlink swaps → complete waste of time

– Guest writing → low quality + off-tone

– Hiring writers → too slow, not authentic

Best-performing content = the ones we wrote ourselves after talking to users.

7/ What you can do right now

Don’t just bookmark this. Actually do it.

Here’s what I’d do if I were starting again:

– Email your users → offer a 20% discount next month in exchange for feedback (where they found you, what they liked, what frustrated them)

– Join your competitors’ Discords or subreddits → note what people complain about

– Revisit your past customer support chats → there’s hidden gold in what people ask or rage about

– Study your competitors’ blogs → see which pages drive signups, then create better versions with visuals, FAQs, or calculators

– Then… write those articles.

That’s literally how we went from 0 → $925 MRR with SEO.

this is my saas