From 0 to 5: Lessons from Launching an MVP Marketing Management Software
Inspired by founders like Marc Lou and Pat from Starter Story, I wanted to take a moment to share where Magic Marketer is at - what’s changed, what’s next, and what I’ve learned so far.
One of my biggest regrets from all the businesses I’ve built is not documenting the steps along the way - the messy middle, the pivots, the wins that didn’t feel like wins (yet).
So, here I am.
I wanted to take a moment to share where Magic Marketer is at - what’s changed, what’s next, and what I’ve learned from taking this idea from 0 to our first 5 customers.
Building, Launching, and the First 5 Customers
Magic Marketer started as a scrappy MVP - something I built to solve my own marketing frustrations. I talk in detail about the journey to today here.
Our first five customers came purely from community and network, from direct outreach and honest conversations.
Those early adopters didn’t buy because of a flashy landing page or paid ads. They said yes because they trusted me.
“I trust you, and I’ll come along this journey with you.”
That trust was everything.
Still, I’m deeply grateful to early believers - they made version one possible.
The Big Shift: From Founder-Led to Product-Led
The past few months have been full of big changes - personally and professionally.
I moved my business out of my house for the first time in ten years.
Prior to this? I’ve been working from home on my skin care brand, Trefiel, and for my marketing coaching and services company, 10k Customers.
I mean… look at the evidence - we used to sleep on our inventory.
And while I’ve always enjoyed this lifetyle and have been doing it for ten years now, I realised something important: what I’ve always wanted to build is the Canva of Marketing.
That means Magic Marketer can’t just be a tool that reflects my processes or preferences.
It has to be flexible enough for other creative marketers - agencies, freelancers, and small business owners - to make it their own.
To do that, I have to let go a little. Let others in. Bring in help with decision-making, strategy, and development.
Because to build something truly scalable, it can’t just be “mine” - it has to be ours.
Every phase of growth has its own playbook
To get to where we are now, I’ve relied on network, community, and past customers.
To double the business, I can probably do the same.
To quadruple it, still - community will carry us.
But to 10x the business? I know I need to change tact.
Actually, not change - come home.
If Magic Marketer’s mission is to make iconic marketing campaigns accessible to as many marketers and businesses as possible, then it only makes sense that we become known for our iconic campaigns.
Not to mention, this is how I grew my first skin care brand Trefiel and made a name for myself as a marketer in the first place.
Fun, iconic, catchy marketing campaigns that other marketers still reference for inspiration more than 10 years later.
I’m looking forward to moving forward with this and stepping back into the creative process for marketing campaigns, utilising the software to help me do so.
Magic Marketer V2 Launch: The Numbers
Version 2 of Magic Marketer went live recently, and here’s a snapshot of what happened behind the scenes:
• Demos held: 10 (group + individuals)
• Conversations with potential users: 35
• Website traffic: 701 sessions
• Marketing sent out: 1 campaign, 45 pieces of marketing
• Impressions: Over 25,000 from all utilised channels
• Hours worked: …. (if we don’t count engineering of V2, it would be at least 60 hours of work just for the marketing and sales… if we count engineering V2, then it would be a lot more than that)
• Conversions: 1 (ooft)
• Conversion rate: 0.14% (double ooft)
• Revenue generated: From this launch alone, $490
These numbers tell a clear story - we got interest, we held conversations, and we learned a lot.
But they also reflect an important reality.
Underperformance Relative to Industry Benchmarks
I think a lot of people are under the impression that we are doing super well based on my LinkedIn content.
We are doing well (profitable in the first months of trading, don’t mind if I do) - and I’m proud - but I also think it’s worth noting that across the board, the launch of Magic Marketer: V2 “Ease” would be considered an under-performing launch.
By most industry standards - even for software MVPs - our traffic, conversion rates, and revenue fell short of benchmarks.
And that’s okay.
I won’t lie - I was disappointed with V2’s launch results.
Like a lot of founders, I really want the product to go to the next level and “become a real software” aka to be scaling and converting at a high rate with cold traffic.
I also really want it to really help the lives of the people who use it. You can read more about our mission here.
But, taking any business from 0 to something is going to have moments that don’t perform as expected and feel disappointing.
That’s part of the process.
It’s an honest reflection that there’s more work to do - in product positioning, marketing strategy, and understanding how our users actually experience the software.
Thoughts and Feelings
Even with numbers that look “low” on paper, I feel a deep sense of progress. Every demo, every conversation, every insight collected is a step closer to the version of Magic Marketer that I’ve always wanted to build.
There’s still pressure - the feeling that what I’m producing isn’t “good enough” or that I haven’t done well enough - but I also feel clarity.
Clarity on what we’re building, who we’re building it for, and why it matters.
Magic Marketer isn’t an MVP anymore, which is really cool.
Magic Marketer is all-in-one marketing management platform for marketers.
And it’s on a mission: to make marketing iconic, accessible, and achievable for marketers who’ve been told the only way to do that is to build a team and “scale more”…
And save the planet, while we do it.
The next chapter is V3 and it’s all about making the software more flexible, more powerful, and more in line with the vision of a marketing system that anyone can use to create marketing and campaigns that work.
I look forward to sharing the next update - including learnings from our Q4 pilot programs, new features, and, hopefully, some more wins that start to match our ambitious mission.
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Creator of Magic Marketer