Building Reviuo as a Side Hustle

August 23, 2024

Chasing the Wrong Goals with "Tween and Tykes"

Hey everyone! Welcome to the 6th episode of my newsletter. So, after getting some decent traction with Rapitpro, I decided to start a new venture called "Tween and Tykes." But, things didn’t go as planned. Within three months, I had to close the platform. The main reason? I started the venture with the wrong mindset—chasing money instead of solving real problems.

Around that time, I got excited about how Shopify apps work. Not just Shopify, but other micro SaaS platforms as well. This new interest led me to dive deep into learning more about micro SaaS and how it all works.

Then, something unexpected happened—I stumbled upon G2, a review platform for enterprise SaaS products. That’s when an idea hit me: why not create a similar listing platform but specifically for micro SaaS? I decided this would be more of a side hustle, just an experiment while continuing with Rapitpro. I also took the time to learn how listing platforms work, how they get monetized, and what other revenue streams are possible.

Building Reviuo

So, I started a company called "Reviuo"—a review platform for micro SaaS. I built it using no-code tools. I was super cautious about having multiple revenue streams, so I collaborated with over 500 micro SaaS products and listed them on my site. From day one, I focused heavily on SEO and content creation. I distributed content on various platforms like LinkedIn, WhatsApp communities, Facebook groups, and so on.

Thanks to this effort, I started getting decent traffic to the site. I also made some commissions through affiliations and sponsored listings. I was bringing in about $500 per month repeatedly. Some people were even willing to pay for sponsored posts where I’d distribute their content. That added another $700 per month to my revenue. Everything was going smoothly.

Then, I noticed another potential opportunity in the service side of things. A few people were asking for help with marketing and content, kind of like freelancing. I landed my first service client, and my revenue grew even more. I was making around $1,000 to $1,200 per month.

Here's a breakdown of the framework I used:

  1. Idea: I targeted an already validated market but added a unique proposition. For instance, G2 focuses on enterprise SaaS, while Reviuo is all about micro SaaS. (Just to clarify, it's a reference, not a direct comparison.)

  2. Tech Stack: I adopted a "ship fast, fix later" approach. Using tools like Webflow and Shopify, I was able to launch the platform within a week.

  3. Website Traffic: My strategy centred on SEO and content distribution. I chose multiple channels to distribute content and monetize it effectively.

  4. Revenue Streams: Instead of relying on just one, I focused on multiple revenue streams—affiliate commissions, paid listings, sponsored posts, and even freelancing services.

  5. Learn and Iterate Approach: I didn’t start with a fully fleshed-out plan, but I made sure to learn and iterate along the way. Each step was a chance to improve and refine the platform based on real-world feedback and results.

The best part? I did everything myself. The entire platform is run by just one person—me. Overall, I spent about 4 hours each day working on both Rapitpro and Reviuo.

But here's the thing—I’m still thinking of all this as just a side hustle, and I’m not sure why.

That wraps up this episode of the newsletter. See you in the upcoming episodes!

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