1. Day -14: Talk to 10 consultants first
Search LinkedIn for "independent consultant", "fractional CFO", "freelance management consultant" and "fractional CMO". Send 20 short notes and aim for 10 calls. Try: "I'm building a tool that turns receipt photos into client-ready expense reports. How do you handle rebillable expenses today? 15 minutes this week?" Write down the exact words they use for the pain.
2. Day -10: Rewrite your landing page in their words
Lead with the job, not the AI. Example headline: "Snap a receipt. It's tagged to the right client and ready to rebill." Add one line on export to QuickBooks, Xero or FreshBooks if you support it. Put a single button for early access or a paid pilot.
3. Day -7: Line up 5 people to try it on launch day
Go back to your call list and ask each person to forward one real receipt on launch day. Their honest feedback in the comments is worth more than upvotes. Offer them a lifetime discount in return, not a free plan forever.
4. Day -3: Join the communities and give before you post
Join r/consulting, r/freelance, r/smallbusiness, and the Indie Hackers forum. Also look for consultant Slack groups like Freelancers Hub and any alumni consulting groups you belong to. Answer 3 to 5 questions about invoicing or taxes this week, with no link. People check your history before they click.
5. Day 0: Post where consultants already complain
In r/freelance, follow the self-promo rules or use the weekly thread. Post: "I built a tool for solo consultants who rebill expenses. Forward a receipt, it pulls amount, date and vendor, guesses the client, and builds the report. Looking for 10 people to break it this week. Free for the first month, then $X." On LinkedIn, post the same story in first person, with a 20-second screen recording of one receipt becoming a report line.
6. Day 0: Reply to every comment within an hour
Answer each question with specifics, like which receipt formats work and how client tagging is decided. If someone shares a real problem, DM them and offer to set up their account on a 10-minute call. Keep a list of every objection you hear.
7. Day +3 to +7: Convert trials into paid
Message each person who uploaded a receipt: "You logged 6 expenses for 2 clients. Want me to set up the monthly report so it's ready before you invoice?" Ask for payment at the moment the tool saves them time, usually right before month-end invoicing. A paid pilot at a low price beats 50 free signups.
8. Day +7 to +14: Repeat what worked, daily
Look at which post and which message got replies, then do more of exactly that. Search LinkedIn each morning for consultants posting about month-end, invoicing or tax season, and comment with something useful. Hulby, an AI cofounder, can run this daily prospecting and follow-up for you so it doesn't slip.
Mistakes to skip
- Leading with "AI-powered" instead of the rebilling and client-invoice pain.
- Launching on Product Hunt only, where few solo consultants hang out.
- Giving the tool away free with no date for when payment starts.
- Dropping links in subreddits without reading the self-promotion rules.
Want this done for your AI expense tool for solo consultants, every day?
Hulby finds the people asking for what you built, writes every reply and email, and keeps you on it until they pay. Free to start.
Find my first customersQuestions
Should I target all freelancers or only consultants?
Start with solo consultants who rebill expenses to clients. The pain is sharper and they bill at higher rates, so saved time is worth more.
What should I charge at launch?
Pick a simple monthly price and charge from the first month after the trial. You can lower it later. Raising it on early users is harder.
Is Product Hunt worth it?
It's fine as a bonus on the same day. Your first paying users will more likely come from LinkedIn, Reddit and direct messages.
How many users do I need before launching?
None. You need about 5 people ready to try it on launch day and a working path from receipt to report.