Kyle Gawley

You have a background in Design. When did the coding kick in?

I've been coding since I got my first computer around 1997. I learned basic Javascript and self-taught myself C/C++ from books my parents bought.

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Did you always have an entrepreneurial mind, or was it growing?

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I didn't have much ambition until I was 18; I failed high school and college the first time, then began to take it seriously after working as a baggage handler and realised I never wanted to work in a job like that. In university, I studied web development and learned there is a world of opportunity in building software online.

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You co-founded Get Invited, you were in the investment world then, a near-death experience  made you go indie and create your products. Can you share the pros and cons of each one ( indie/ bootstrap vs VC/investment, more corporate)

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It depends on the individual and the journey they want to embark upon. Bootstrapping provides a lot of freedom and an excellent lifestyle for indie entrepreneurs, but there are limitations on scale, which is fine for most people. For those wanting to create a considerable impact and build a massive company, VC is the way. The latter is a very different experience, which can result in stress and loss of freedom.

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Gravity - Can you explain what is it and why you created it?

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Gravity is a SaaS boilerplate that helps founders launch new products at warp speed. It provides all the functionality needed to spin up a new SaaS product in a single download—everything from authentication and payments to security and a UI.I built it to scratch my own itch of creating new products quickly without wasting time writing boilerplate code.

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You have a course on how to build a Saas product from Scratch. Was it made to teach what is needed to create a Saas in Gravity?

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Yes, the course covers building a lot of functionality in the boilerplate, but not all of it. It's focused on building an Instagram-style photo-sharing app, so there is a lot of specific content centred around this, too, that's not included in the boilerplate.

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You are now also on the AI route with AI Graphics. Is this going to be a side project, your next big project, or what is your approach to it?

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I started it for fun, but now it is getting traction, and I have a few paying customers, so I'm aiming to get more validation at the minute. The conversion rate is low, and I'm also figuring out what the focus of the product should be.

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What are the business models for the 3 of your products?

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Gravity is a hybrid of one-off payments and an annual subscription for updates. The course is a one-off payment, and AI Graphics is a SaaS with monthly subscription payments.

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What about marketing strategies? You are strong on Twitter, but do you use anything else?

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It’s a combination of Twitter, Email and SEO.

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How do you balance the responsibilities of development, customer support, and marketing for your product?

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In the beginning, I spent most of my time building the product, but now Gravity is very mature, so there's less time needed to add new features, and I can spend more time on marketing. I'm fortunate that my support burden is relatively low because my customers are technical.

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Tips for growing your brand on Twitter?

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Be consistent - show up every day and add value. Initially, it's better to focus on commenting on other people's content and adding value, then transition into writing more content once an audience foundation is established.

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There is sometimes the talk ( mostly when you create a community as an indie hacker to sell a product/service) that you have to give, give, give and then ask back. What is your take on that?

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On Twitter and in communities like Indie Hackers, this is true. My DMs are full of strangers who don't follow me and have never engaged with me, asking me for favours. They want instant results without giving. I can't believe this strategy works well for anyone. If you look at anyone who shows up daily to provide value, it's easy for them to get support when they ask because they have given a lot and made an effort to build relationships.

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Favorite tool and why?

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Todoist. I use it daily to manage everything from running my business and personal life to writing down tweet ideas.13.Word of advice?Don't overthink; just do it.

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One book, one person to follow on twitter and one music?

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One of the best books for bootstrappers is Arvid Kahl's 'Zero to Sold'. Follow Pieter Levels; he's been an inspiration for me over the years, and he share's his entire journey. My favourite track at the minute is Signum - Coming On Strong (ReOrder Remix)