u/TheGreatPatriarch

Question for the group here with some background. I co-founded and own a fairly successful book agency where we handle book cover design, interior editing, marketing, etc. We get authors who write their books with AI fairly regularly, and we are able to position them to get fairly consistent sales.

Based on this, I'm thinking about bringing this in-house and leveraging our methods to create our own series. BUT, every time I have attempted this—meaning creating the prompts, wire structure, characters, and then finally writing the book—the overall structure of the book is inconsistent, lacks flow, and is generally unsatisfying to read. I have not asked our customers about their processes in detail and don’t want to alienate them, so I would not do that, but I am seeking input from the community here.

What are some of the challenges that everyone is seeing from a character consistency perspective and character interaction/personality consistency? And then, for those who have written multiple books based on the same characters, what are some of the main issues you are seeing?

Hello all,

I recently wrote a post about how to scale and grow startups in this current environment. I just finished building out an agentic marketing AI SaaS as COO/CMO, where we hit almost 2k users within a month of launch and scaled to 21k+ LinkedIn followers.

https://www.reddit.com/r/startup\_resources/s/MFkkzH6vg0

I now have the capacity to mentor and guide a few young entrepreneurs. If you have a project (whether physical or SaaS), have identified your customers, and have some initial traction but need help scaling up, DM me to see if we can work together.

Looking forward to the convo's!

-Martin

My post comply with the rules

Hello all,

I recently wrote a post about how to scale and grow startups in this current environment. I just finished building out an agentic marketing AI SaaS as COO/CMO, where we hit almost 2k users within a month of launch and scaled to 21k+ LinkedIn followers.

https://www.reddit.com/r/startup\_resources/s/MFkkzH6vg0

I now have the capacity to mentor and guide a few young entrepreneurs. If you have a project (whether physical or SaaS), have identified your customers, and have some initial traction but need help scaling up, DM me to see if we can work together.

Looking forward to the convo's.

-Martin

"My post comply with the rules."

I wanted to through out my observations after having started a few successful businesses, raised funding and even exited one. 20 years in the startup and corporate space has showed me that the landscape constantly changes and I wanted to share some thoughts. With the rise of AI creating is easier than ever and moats have been bridged, ideas that were not economic before have become so now.

Marketing can now be automated, sales channels can be staffed with agents etc. this has all created the illusion that things are now easier. These tools are fantastic and a real game changes when you are the only one using them but not when everyone has access to them.

With the changes over the last 12 months what has happened is an erosion of trust, most traditional channels especially in the b2b space have now been spammed into oblivion, when execs get a pitch it does not matter how you position the connection a pitch is a pitch. There has also been a flood of poor performing products in the market, programmers shipping hot garbage every week that people try and they get burned by and this impacts everyone's ability to sell across the board.

In the current landscape what works (based on my observations) is paid ads because most of the noise wont compete via paid ads. Trust signals and authority, strong real reviews on google, trust pilot etc, strong social media following where the company or representatives are an authority figure on the product they are selling. Finally the warm referral, this last one quickly cuts through all of the noise and creates a differentiator that no amount of AI will overcome.

My advice to someone looking to built today is as follows:

Identify a niche or focus area that you truly want to work in/build around.

Connect with decision makers in that area, tell them why you are passionate about soling problems in their field and ask them what problems keep them awake at night.

Build solutions around that, offer those products to those people for free in exchange for feedback.

Once you have solved their problems ask them honest questions about how much you should charge for these solutions in their industry and ask for referrals to others.

Build on that personal connection, provide quality, build authority.

It WILL take time but eventually you will get to the point where others will come to you for your solution and your moat is the trust you have built.

These are the people who get their companies funded, the ones that find people and industries that have problems and they solve them.

-Martin

I wanted to through out my observations after having started a few successful businesses, raised funding and even exited one. 20 years in the startup and corporate space has showed me that the landscape constantly changes and I wanted to share some thoughts. With the rise of AI creating is easier than ever and moats have been bridged, ideas that were not economic before have become so now.

Marketing can now be automated, sales channels can be staffed with agents etc. this has all created the illusion that things are now easier. These tools are fantastic and a real game changes when you are the only one using them but not when everyone has access to them.

With the changes over the last 12 months what has happened is an erosion of trust, most traditional channels especially in the b2b space have now been spammed into oblivion, when execs get a pitch it does not matter how you position the connection a pitch is a pitch. There has also been a flood of poor performing products in the market, programmers shipping hot garbage every week that people try and they get burned by and this impacts everyone's ability to sell across the board.

In the current landscape what works (based on my observations) is paid ads because most of the noise wont compete via paid ads. Trust signals and authority, strong real reviews on google, trust pilot etc, strong social media following where the company or representatives are an authority figure on the product they are selling. Finally the warm referral, this last one quickly cuts through all of the noise and creates a differentiator that no amount of AI will overcome.

My advice to someone looking to built today is as follows:

Identify a niche or focus area that you truly want to work in/build around.

Connect with decision makers in that area, tell them why you are passionate about soling problems in their field and ask them what problems keep them awake at night.

Build solutions around that, offer those products to those people for free in exchange for feedback.

Once you have solved their problems ask them honest questions about how much you should charge for these solutions in their industry and ask for referrals to others.

Build on that personal connection, provide quality, build authority.

It WILL take time but eventually you will get to the point where others will come to you for your solution and your moat is the trust you have built.

These are the people who get their companies funded, the ones that find people and industries that have problems and they solve them.

-Martin

I wanted to through out my observations after having started a few successful businesses, raised funding and even exited one. 20 years in the startup and corporate space has showed me that the landscape constantly changes and I wanted to share some thoughts. With the rise of AI creating is easier than ever and moats have been bridged, ideas that were not economic before have become so now.

Marketing can now be automated, sales channels can be staffed with agents etc. this has all created the illusion that things are now easier. These tools are fantastic and a real game changes when you are the only one using them but not when everyone has access to them.

With the changes over the last 12 months what has happened is an erosion of trust, most traditional channels especially in the b2b space have now been spammed into oblivion, when execs get a pitch it does not matter how you position the connection a pitch is a pitch. There has also been a flood of poor performing products in the market, programmers shipping hot garbage every week that people try and they get burned by and this impacts everyone's ability to sell across the board.

In the current landscape what works (based on my observations) is paid ads because most of the noise wont compete via paid ads. Trust signals and authority, strong real reviews on google, trust pilot etc, strong social media following where the company or representatives are an authority figure on the product they are selling. Finally the warm referral, this last one quickly cuts through all of the noise and creates a differentiator that no amount of AI will overcome.

My advice to someone looking to built today is as follows:

Identify a niche or focus area that you truly want to work in/build around.

Connect with decision makers in that area, tell them why you are passionate about soling problems in their field and ask them what problems keep them awake at night.

Build solutions around that, offer those products to those people for free in exchange for feedback.

Once you have solved their problems ask them honest questions about how much you should charge for these solutions in their industry and ask for referrals to others.

Build on that personal connection, provide quality, build authority.

It WILL take time but eventually you will get to the point where others will come to you for your solution and your moat is the trust you have built.

These are the people who get their companies funded, the ones that find people and industries that have problems and they solve them.

-Martin

I wanted to through out my observations after having started a few successful businesses, raised funding and even exited one. 20 years in the startup and corporate space has showed me that the landscape constantly changes and I wanted to share some thoughts. With the rise of AI creating is easier than ever and moats have been bridged, ideas that were not economic before have become so now.

Marketing can now be automated, sales channels can be staffed with agents etc. this has all created the illusion that things are now easier. These tools are fantastic and a real game changes when you are the only one using them but not when everyone has access to them.

With the changes over the last 12 months what has happened is an erosion of trust, most traditional channels especially in the b2b space have now been spammed into oblivion, when execs get a pitch it does not matter how you position the connection a pitch is a pitch. There has also been a flood of poor performing products in the market, programmers shipping hot garbage every week that people try and they get burned by and this impacts everyone's ability to sell across the board.

In the current landscape what works (based on my observations) is paid ads because most of the noise wont compete via paid ads. Trust signals and authority, strong real reviews on google, trust pilot etc, strong social media following where the company or representatives are an authority figure on the product they are selling. Finally the warm referral, this last one quickly cuts through all of the noise and creates a differentiator that no amount of AI will overcome.

My advice to someone looking to built today is as follows:

Identify a niche or focus area that you truly want to work in/build around.

Connect with decision makers in that area, tell them why you are passionate about soling problems in their field and ask them what problems keep them awake at night.

Build solutions around that, offer those products to those people for free in exchange for feedback.

Once you have solved their problems ask them honest questions about how much you should charge for these solutions in their industry and ask for referrals to others.

Build on that personal connection, provide quality, build authority.

It WILL take time but eventually you will get to the point where others will come to you for your solution and your moat is the trust you have built.

These are the people who get their companies funded, the ones that find people and industries that have problems and they solve them.

-Martin

I wanted to through out my observations after having started a few successful businesses, raised funding and even exited one. 20 years in the startup and corporate space has showed me that the landscape constantly changes and I wanted to share some thoughts. With the rise of AI creating is easier than ever and moats have been bridged, ideas that were not economic before have become so now.

Marketing can now be automated, sales channels can be staffed with agents etc. this has all created the illusion that things are now easier. These tools are fantastic and a real game changes when you are the only one using them but not when everyone has access to them.

With the changes over the last 12 months what has happened is an erosion of trust, most traditional channels especially in the b2b space have now been spammed into oblivion, when execs get a pitch it does not matter how you position the connection a pitch is a pitch. There has also been a flood of poor performing products in the market, programmers shipping hot garbage every week that people try and they get burned by and this impacts everyone's ability to sell across the board.

In the current landscape what works (based on my observations) is paid ads because most of the noise wont compete via paid ads. Trust signals and authority, strong real reviews on google, trust pilot etc, strong social media following where the company or representatives are an authority figure on the product they are selling. Finally the warm referral, this last one quickly cuts through all of the noise and creates a differentiator that no amount of AI will overcome.

My advice to someone looking to built today is as follows:

Identify a niche or focus area that you truly want to work in/build around.

Connect with decision makers in that area, tell them why you are passionate about soling problems in their field and ask them what problems keep them awake at night.

Build solutions around that, offer those products to those people for free in exchange for feedback.

Once you have solved their problems ask them honest questions about how much you should charge for these solutions in their industry and ask for referrals to others.

Build on that personal connection, provide quality, build authority.

It WILL take time but eventually you will get to the point where others will come to you for your solution and your moat is the trust you have built.

These are the people who get their companies funded, the ones that find people and industries that have problems and they solve them.

-Martin

I wanted to through out my observations after having started a few successful businesses, raised funding and even exited one. 20 years in the startup and corporate space has showed me that the landscape constantly changes and I wanted to share some thoughts. With the rise of AI creating is easier than ever and moats have been bridged, ideas that were not economic before have become so now.

Marketing can now be automated, sales channels can be staffed with agents etc. this has all created the illusion that things are now easier. These tools are fantastic and a real game changes when you are the only one using them but not when everyone has access to them.

With the changes over the last 12 months what has happened is an erosion of trust, most traditional channels especially in the b2b space have now been spammed into oblivion, when execs get a pitch it does not matter how you position the connection a pitch is a pitch. There has also been a flood of poor performing products in the market, programmers shipping hot garbage every week that people try and they get burned by and this impacts everyone's ability to sell across the board.

In the current landscape what works (based on my observations) is paid ads because most of the noise wont compete via paid ads. Trust signals and authority, strong real reviews on google, trust pilot etc, strong social media following where the company or representatives are an authority figure on the product they are selling. Finally the warm referral, this last one quickly cuts through all of the noise and creates a differentiator that no amount of AI will overcome.

My advice to someone looking to built today is as follows:

Identify a niche or focus area that you truly want to work in/build around.

Connect with decision makers in that area, tell them why you are passionate about soling problems in their field and ask them what problems keep them awake at night.

Build solutions around that, offer those products to those people for free in exchange for feedback.

Once you have solved their problems ask them honest questions about how much you should charge for these solutions in their industry and ask for referrals to others.

Build on that personal connection, provide quality, build authority.

It WILL take time but eventually you will get to the point where others will come to you for your solution and your moat is the trust you have built.

These are the people who get their companies funded, the ones that find people and industries that have problems and they solve them.

-Martin

I wanted to through out my observations after having started a few successful businesses, raised funding and even exited one. 20 years in the startup and corporate space has showed me that the landscape constantly changes and I wanted to share some thoughts. With the rise of AI creating is easier than ever and moats have been bridged, ideas that were not economic before have become so now.

Marketing can now be automated, sales channels can be staffed with agents etc. this has all created the illusion that things are now easier. These tools are fantastic and a real game changes when you are the only one using them but not when everyone has access to them.

With the changes over the last 12 months what has happened is an erosion of trust, most traditional channels especially in the b2b space have now been spammed into oblivion, when execs get a pitch it does not matter how you position the connection a pitch is a pitch. There has also been a flood of poor performing products in the market, programmers shipping hot garbage every week that people try and they get burned by and this impacts everyone's ability to sell across the board.

In the current landscape what works (based on my observations) is paid ads because most of the noise wont compete via paid ads. Trust signals and authority, strong real reviews on google, trust pilot etc, strong social media following where the company or representatives are an authority figure on the product they are selling. Finally the warm referral, this last one quickly cuts through all of the noise and creates a differentiator that no amount of AI will overcome.

My advice to someone looking to built today is as follows:

Identify a niche or focus area that you truly want to work in/build around.

Connect with decision makers in that area, tell them why you are passionate about soling problems in their field and ask them what problems keep them awake at night.

Build solutions around that, offer those products to those people for free in exchange for feedback.

Once you have solved their problems ask them honest questions about how much you should charge for these solutions in their industry and ask for referrals to others.

Build on that personal connection, provide quality, build authority.

It WILL take time but eventually you will get to the point where others will come to you for your solution and your moat is the trust you have built.

These are the people who get their companies funded, the ones that find people and industries that have problems and they solve them.

-Martin

I wanted to through out my observations after having started a few successful businesses, raised funding and even exited one. 20 years in the startup and corporate space has showed me that the landscape constantly changes and I wanted to share some thoughts. With the rise of AI creating is easier than ever and moats have been bridged, ideas that were not economic before have become so now.

Marketing can now be automated, sales channels can be staffed with agents etc. this has all created the illusion that things are now easier. These tools are fantastic and a real game changes when you are the only one using them but not when everyone has access to them.

With the changes over the last 12 months what has happened is an erosion of trust, most traditional channels especially in the b2b space have now been spammed into oblivion, when execs get a pitch it does not matter how you position the connection a pitch is a pitch. There has also been a flood of poor performing products in the market, programmers shipping hot garbage every week that people try and they get burned by and this impacts everyone's ability to sell across the board.

In the current landscape what works (based on my observations) is paid ads because most of the noise wont compete via paid ads. Trust signals and authority, strong real reviews on google, trust pilot etc, strong social media following where the company or representatives are an authority figure on the product they are selling. Finally the warm referral, this last one quickly cuts through all of the noise and creates a differentiator that no amount of AI will overcome.

My advice to someone looking to built today is as follows:

Identify a niche or focus area that you truly want to work in/build around.

Connect with decision makers in that area, tell them why you are passionate about soling problems in their field and ask them what problems keep them awake at night.

Build solutions around that, offer those products to those people for free in exchange for feedback.

Once you have solved their problems ask them honest questions about how much you should charge for these solutions in their industry and ask for referrals to others.

Build on that personal connection, provide quality, build authority.

It WILL take time but eventually you will get to the point where others will come to you for your solution and your moat is the trust you have built.

These are the people who get their companies funded, the ones that find people and industries that have problems and they solve them.

-Martin

I wanted to through out my observations after having started a few successful businesses, raised funding and even exited one. 20 years in the startup and corporate space has showed me that the landscape constantly changes and I wanted to share some thoughts. With the rise of AI creating is easier than ever and moats have been bridged, ideas that were not economic before have become so now.

Marketing can now be automated, sales channels can be staffed with agents etc. this has all created the illusion that things are now easier. These tools are fantastic and a real game changes when you are the only one using them but not when everyone has acess to them.

With the changes over the last 12 months what has happened is an erosion of trust, most traditional channels especially in the b2b space have now been spammed into oblivion, when execs get a linkedin pitch it does not matter how you position the connection a pitch is a pitch. There has also been a flood of poor performing products in the market, programmers shipping hot garbage every week that people try and they get burned by and this impacts everyone's ability to sell across the board.

In the current landscape what works (based on my observations) is paid ads because most of the noise wont compete via paid ads. Trust signals and authority, strong real reviews on google, trust pilot etc, strong social media following where the company or representatives are an authority figure on the product they are selling. Finally the warm referral, this last one quickly cuts through all of the noise and creates a differentiator that no amount of AI will overcome.

My advice to someone looking to built today is as follows:

Identify a niche or focus area that you truly want to work in/build around.

Connect with decision makers in that area, tell them why you are passionate about soling problems in their field and ask them what problems keep them awake at night.

Build solutions around that, offer those products to those people for free in exchange for feedback.

Once you have solved their problems ask them honest questions about how much you should charge for these solutions in their industry and ask for referrals to others.

Build on that personal connection, provide quality, build authority.

It WILL take time but eventually you will get to the point where others will come to you for your solution and your moat is the trust you have built.

These are the people who get their companies funded, the ones that find people and industries that have problems and they solve them.

-Martin

I wanted to through out my observations after having started a few successful businesses, raised funding and even exited one. 20 years in the startup and corporate space has showed me that the landscape constantly changes and I wanted to share some thoughts. With the rise of AI creating is easier than ever and moats have been bridged, ideas that were not economic before have become so now.

Marketing can now be automated, sales channels can be staffed with agents etc. this has all created the illusion that things are now easier. These tools are fantastic and a real game changes when you are the only one using them but not when everyone has acess to them.

With the changes over the last 12 months what has happened is an erosion of trust, most traditional channels especially in the b2b space have now been spammed into oblivion, when execs get a linkedin pitch it does not matter how you position the connection a pitch is a pitch. There has also been a flood of poor performing products in the market, programmers shipping hot garbage every week that people try and they get burned by and this impacts everyone's ability to sell across the board.

In the current landscape what works (based on my observations) is paid ads because most of the noise wont compete via paid ads. Trust signals and authority, strong real reviews on google, trust pilot etc, strong social media following where the company or representatives are an authority figure on the product they are selling. Finally the warm referral, this last one quickly cuts through all of the noise and creates a differentiator that no amount of AI will overcome.

My advice to someone looking to built today is as follows:

Identify a niche or focus area that you truly want to work in/build around.

Connect with decision makers in that area, tell them why you are passionate about soling problems in their field and ask them what problems keep them awake at night.

Build solutions around that, offer those products to those people for free in exchange for feedback.

Once you have solved their problems ask them honest questions about how much you should charge for these solutions in their industry and ask for referrals to others.

Build on that personal connection, provide quality, build authority.

It WILL take time but eventually you will get to the point where others will come to you for your solution and your moat is the trust you have built.

These are the people who get their companies funded, the ones that find people and industries that have problems and they solve them.

-Martin

​

Salam everyone,

I’ve spent the last several years as an executive and entrepreneur in the US (specifically in the AI and advertising sectors), and I’ve noticed a recurring pattern: Pakistani startups are building world-class products but getting throttled by "The Infrastructure Gap."

Whether it's the nightmare of getting a reliable Stripe account, navigating the nuances of a US LLC, or just having a stateside phone system that doesn't scream "overseas," these "boring" logistical hurdles often stop growth before it starts.

I have some capacity right now and want to help a few high-growth teams bridge this gap. I’m not just talking about "registering a company"—I’m talking about setting up the actual backbone you need to scale and compete as a US-equivalent entity.

What I can help manage/set up:

US LLC Formation & Compliance: Getting you set up in the right state (Wyoming/Delaware) with the proper Registered Agent and EIN.

Financial Rails: Navigating the Stripe/Fintech onboarding process so you can actually collect USD without the constant fear of a "frozen account."

Communications: Setting up professional US-based phone systems and virtual footprints that build trust with Western clients.

Operational Scaling: Systems for SEO, marketing automation, and lead gen once the infrastructure is live.

Why I’m doing this:

I’ve mentored founders before and firmly believe that the talent in Pakistan is currently undervalued because of these friction points. I want to help solve the "execution problem" by handling the stateside logistics so you can focus on building the product.

If you’re at the stage where you’re ready to scale globally but the paperwork and payment rails are holding you back, I'd love to chat.

Let’s discuss below: What has been your biggest headache when trying to set up a US presence? Is it the tax compliance, the bank account, or something else entirely?

Not selling a service looking to partner with and mentor a few founders.

My co-founder and I run a successful design agency serving the author and publishing niche. We are currently expanding our operations into general business web design, SEO, and maintenance.

Because our workflows are highly optimized, we are able to heavily undercut standard market prices while delivering high-end results. We are looking for sales representatives to help drive this expansion and generate leads/closings.

The Role:

Identify and reach out to small-to-medium businesses needing web refreshes or SEO.

Pitch our maintenance and design packages (highly competitive pricing).

Manage the initial communication and hand off qualified leads or closed deals to us.

Compensation:

Base Pay: DOE (Depends on Experience). We provide a guaranteed base to ensure you are compensated for your outreach efforts and time.

Commission: You will earn a percentage of the total contract value for every successful sign-up.

Recurring Bonus: A monthly "tail" commission for any ongoing maintenance packages you close.

Requirements:

Excellent written English and communication skills.

Prior experience in sales, lead generation, or SEO/Web Design is a major plus.

Ability to work independently and track your outreach effectively.