How did you get your first 5 paying users? Stuck at 0 after a 14-day launch.
Quick context: spent the last few months building Molverine — a web-based detective game where you solve crimes by examining evidence and interrogating AI-driven suspects (GPT under the hood). Launched 14 days ago.
Numbers so far:
\- 0 paying users
\- YouTube Shorts: 1 video hit 1.5k views with 21.5% retention. 4 others stuck under 150.
\- Instagram Reels: <200 views per post, 0 followers
\- Direct traffic to the site: basically nothing
What I've tried:
\- Short-form video (true-crime-style hooks, mystery teasers)
\- Landing page with a playable free case
\- A couple of organic posts in adjacent communities — flat
Where I'm stuck:
\- The one Shorts hit suggests the top-of-funnel formula works, but it didn't convert. Don't know if it's the landing page, the offer, the audience mismatch, or all three.
\- Can't decide whether to (a) double down on content/audience building, (b) do a Product Hunt-style launch, or (c) go niche — true crime subreddits, mystery Discord servers, AI hobbyist communities.
\- It's B2C and impulse-buy-friendly, so I'm not sure the "10 cold DMs a day" SaaS playbook even applies.
The ask: what's the ONE thing you'd do right now to get the first 5 paying users? Not a checklist — the single move that worked for you when you were stuck at zero.
Happy to share the link in comments if anyone wants to look at the landing/product.
