That’s the bold take from Flavio Amiel, founder of SWAT SEO and Swiftbrief. In this episode, we ponder the myths, tactics, and hidden opportunities in SEO for startups and online entrepreneurs. Spoiler: If you’re obsessing over keywords, you’re doing it wrong.Key Quotes:* "Start at the epicenter of your business. That’s where the money is."* "Google isn’t killing SEO… it’s just handing the mic to the people who actually sell stuff."What we uncover in this chat:* Why long-tail keywords are overrated (and what to focus on instead)* How TikTok + Instagram search are changing the game* The #1 mistake startups make with SEO content* Why AI-generated content fails (and how to use AI smartly)* Publishing blogs vs newsletters Flavio spills the tea on why Reddit dominates Google results (and why he refuses to game it), how his agency tripled a client’s traffic in 30 days just by reorganizing content, and the real reason Substack newsletters rarely rank—even with killer writing.👇 Want More?* Subscribe for more founder interviews from us.* Follow Flavio on X for SEO gold.* Try Swift Brief for AI-powered SEO briefs.💬 Question for you: What’s your biggest SEO struggle right now? Drop it in the comments, or shoot Flavio a DM today!(P.S. The secret Skool Flavio mentions? Sign up here.) This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
Starting this month, he’s been dropping amazing lead lists from Reddit for founders across the Build in Public community on X. But this conversation is about much more than leads, Jordan’s journey from HSBC to solo founder was not an easy road. He’s learned a lot in the year since he launched Founders Owl as a simple side hustle — we get into:* How he found a niche he could serve and won his first customers.* What he learned from going ‘too niche’ early on.* Why Reddit is such a genuine platform to connect with prospective clients & users.* What the funnel looks like from Reddit to sale.And a lot more. Enjoy the show and be sure to follow Jordan on X if you’re keen to learn more about landing leads on Reddit! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
Co-founders Gabriel and Alec are two builders from the blockchain & crypto space who decided to reshape fintech for small indie entrepreneurs and startups.They have a bright vision for the future of startups, but the lack of transparency among the leading merchant of record payment providers pushed them to launch Creem.So they did, in just a few months 💪Here’s what we discuss in this episode:🤖 Using AI to track metrics on payments & more🤑 Why Gabriel loves bootstrapped startups but needed to raise funds for Creem🤔 What the current payment providers get wrong🛠️ The challenges and future of fintech for startups☃️ How to build a global startup from the quiet countryside of EstoniaAlong with Creem, Gabriel hosts a fun and candid vlog on YouTube where he releases weekly updates and behind-the-scenes stories.Links to topics we discuss in the show:* Meditations on Moloch by Scott Alexander* Estonia’s e-residency program for founders.* Antler VC and startup program.I hope you enjoy the show and have a wonderful holiday season with your friends and family 🎄Timecodes:00:00 — Intro & Meet Gabriel Ferraz01:14 — What did you ship recently?05:46 — Purpose and history of Creem14:55 — Gabriel’s vision of the future18:14 — What’s a merchant of record?24:02 — Co-founder journey and Estonia34:55 — Making vlogs as a founder40:00 — Raising funds from Antler45:33 — Problems with scaling fintechs54:21 — Customer support and the lowest M-o-R fees This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
Virginia’s story started with her walking into the gym at college and ‘being terrified’ to use the great fitness space now available to her. But that fear didn’t stop her.Instead she went on to form a strength training community with her fellow students, gained her Personal Training certification and started thinking about an app that could help more ladies feel confident in the gym.This is her story and the story of Dawn — we got into:🚀 The Dawn launch and origins of the idea🤝 Building a real life fitness community and bringing that feel into the Dawn App experience⚒️ The app development process and life as a student & founder📈 Fitness market trends and where Dawn will find traction in this growing nicheAlong the way, Virginia shares her perspective on personal training, relocating to New York City and the energy it takes to:* launch an app* with a full-time * push hard in the gym* and make great reels along the wayI really enjoyed this one and I have no doubt that Virginia’s going to do great things with Dawn in the near future. Right now the app is live only at select universities in the US. But as you’ll see in the show, she’s got plans to expand soon!Follow along for app updates on Dawn’s Instagram and for fitness inspiration on Virginia’s Instagram 💪Here are the detailed sections of the show:1:00-6:20: The Dawn launch and origins of the idea6:20-10:45: Why strength training and the community Virginia built10:45-17:40: The evolution of the idea and key features for the MVP17:40-24:40: Differentiating Dawn from other workout trackers24:41-28:35: Being a Personal Trainer vs Founding a fitness app28:37-31:23: The App development process with Paralect31:30-41:34: Launching Dawn as a college student 41:35-45:39: Life in New York City as a founder45:40-51:39: Life Balance and efficient workouts51:40-58:30: Sharing the journey and making contentThanks for watching — shares, comments and reviews are always appreciated! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
This show is about much more than podcasts though. George Boyd is the founder and editor behind Cut the Pod — his agency that helps podcasters create great videos for their full shows or short-form content.So this is a peek behind the curtain of video podcasting, as I’ve struggled to learn the process from hosting and recording to editing and growing Ship it and Sip it. It was a real treat to have George on the show and bring his experience to light for you all. Here’s what we got into:🎥 How he got into editing in LA and ended up working on video content for Disney, Anthony Bourdain and other top video teams🎙️ Why podcasting is different from simply publishing video content on YouTube and why it’s worth doing even now.🎬 What amateur or hobbyist editors get wrong and how they can make their best show without a decade of video experience.🤝 How George feels about getting out in front of the camera again and his plan for launching his own show early next year.With the range of low-cost tools and platforms that make recording, editing and publishing high-quality video easier than ever before, what’s stopping you from launching your show?Check out this convo and head down the road to pressing publish today 🫶🏻Follow along with George’s journey as an editor and soon-to-be host on X. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
Welcome to new episode of Ship It and Sip It 🍻Real talk on the world of bootstrapping and entrepreneurship with this week’s guest, Pete.If you're keen on building a business around a newsletter, directory, community or just curious about making a living outside the traditional 9-to-5, this episode is for you!Pete shares his journey from a pretty crap job in a bookies to making over $2,500 by his third month of indie hacking.We uncover:🔍 the importance of identifying demand⚒️ launching products in a proven niche🤑 why you shouldn't be afraid to monetize early and✅ the value of consistency in content creationLearn from his experience with projects like highsignal.io, his newsletter that curates the best indie hacker and bootstrap news, and discover his insights on building a successful online presence.Highlights:🐾 Pete's transition from coding to entrepreneurship🤷♂️ How Pete thinks about validation for info products and new ideas🐤 Using platforms like Twitter and LinkedIn for growth⚖️ Balancing multiple projects, context switching as a ghost writer and focusing on what's workingWhether you're a soon-to-be founder or looking to refine your existing content strategies, Pete's story offers valuable lessons on persistence, ideation and practical goal setting.Don't forget to like, subscribe, and hit the notification bell for more inspiring stories and actionable insights!Check out Pete's work at:💌 High Signal: www.highsignal.io📝 Pete Codes blog: www.petecodes.io🐤 Twitter: x.com/petecodesThank you for watching, and we’ll see you in the next episode! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
🏃♂️🚴♀️ This week we're thrilled to have Victor Hesselbom in the studio. Victor is the brilliant mind behind Watchletic, an indie Apple Watch app designed for runners and cyclists.In this episode, we uncover:⌚️ Victor's background and his journey into developing Apple Watch apps as his side husle.🏃🏻♂️The inspiration behind Watchletic and how it serves the running and cycling community.🧩 The unique challenges and rewards of developing apps for the Apple Watch.⚖️ How Victor balances his side projects with his day job and new responsibilities as a dad.🤝 The power of community and marketing on platforms like Reddit.🤖 The future of wearables and fitness tech, and AI's potential in this niche.Victor also shares his fascinating stories from the early days as a game developer and how those experiences shaped his approach to building Watchletic.Plus, hear about his surprising success with his first Apple Watch game and his trouble-shooting journey while creating a podcast app for the watch.Whether you're a developer, an endurance enthusiast, or just curious about the intersection of technology and health, this show offers first-hand insights and inspiration.Don't forget to like, subscribe, and hit the notification bell to stay updated on all our latest interviews!📢 Comment Below: Have you tried Watchletic? What features would you like to see in future updates? Let us know your thoughts and questions for Viktor!🔗 Links Mentioned:Watchletic: watchletic.comFollow Viktor on Twitter: x.com/hesselbomJoin the conversation on Reddit: reddit.com/r/watchletic/📧 Stay Connected: Follow us on Twitter 🫶 This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
Welcome to another exciting episode of Ship It and Sip It 🎉This week, we have a fantastic guest, Best, who shares his incredible journey in the tech world, from teaching English in Ukraine to becoming a bootstrapped founder in the open-source community.In this episode, we uncover:👨🏻🏫 Best's passion for online learning and leveraging AI tools to enhance productivity.🧱 The launch of Formbricks on Product Hunt and the unique challenges of launching open-source projects.🚀 The story behind ClassroomIO, a digital learning platform Best has been developing for over five years.👨🏽💻 Insights into the world of open source, including Best's experience with Formbricks and how it influenced the development of ClassroomIO.🐥 Tips for junior developers on contributing to open source and overcoming imposter syndrome.🤖 The role of AI in coding and how tools like Gemini and GitHub Copilot can enhance a developer's workflow.🌚 Best's participation in BuildSpace's Nights and Weekends program and the goals he aims to achieve with ClassroomIO.📣 The importance of building in public and how it can transform your project and career.Follow Best:Twitter/X: @rotimi_best Classroom.io: @classroomioDon't forget to like, comment, and subscribe! Thank you for watching, and we hope this episode inspires you to dive into the world of open source and leverage AI tools to boost your productivity. 🚀 This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
Pete's the first guest I've had in this particular niche and with over 15 years of experience he's the perfect one to explain it all. We get into: • Why websites should rely more on SEO for sales than ad driven traffic • How eCom has changed as consolidation and platforms like Amazon keep growing • What new sites should do to start off on the right foot with Google Search • Where to use AI generated content and images on your site And much more. Pete's recently shipped a new community around all things SEO & AI — check it out here on Skool (it's free to join) Enjoy the show and you can find Pete on Youtube as well as X 🧙♂️ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
Hey Shippers and Sippers, I am so glad to be back with a fresh episode and fantastic conversation with Eli. I had a little break while we welcomed our second daughter into the world!But the show must go on and Eli’s insights are an amazing way to come back to the studio.Here’s why — Eli’s been on a mission to find freedom and help technical founders figure out early sales for many many years.Here’s what we got into:🎯 Why targeting indiehackers is harder than it seems🤑 How to find businesses who are really ready to pay for solutions🥴 What it takes to find early customers on RedditAnd there’s way more. Enjoy the show! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
Hire global talent or get left behind | Ep89 with Paul XueLast week Paul mentioned on X that he wanted share his thoughts & findings after a few months of researching the state of global hiring. We're happy to play host to this conversation and share Paul's ideas with you! Here's what we got into: 🤑 The reasons having a global team make sense for your startup.🛠️ How to build a remote, async workflow that won't slow your team down no matter where they are.🚫 What kind of mistakes or blockers still exist for founders who try to go global.🤝 How to connect with employees or employers who are a good fit for the company and culture (without spamming AI generated resumes)And that's just the start — Paul cares deeply about building a sense of community no matter how physically separated a team is. Hope you enjoy the show 🍻Follow Paul on X and check out his amazing guide to building a successful agency! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
Beyond merely budgeting or money tracking, Investrio puts education and money mentorship in the center of the equation to help young folks figure out how to get out of debt and build a better financial future.Here's what we got into in the show: 🤝 How Laura and Joyce met and objectively decided to team up as co-founders 💪 What they brought to the team in experience and skillset 🫶 How they used their community and VC experience to shape the product idea and guide the build 🫣 What speed-bumps they hit along the way as they built the MVPAnd of course what's coming soon and their vision for success with Investrio.ioDefinitely check out their site if you're looking for a better personal fintech product and follow Joyce and Laura on Linkedin for more insights from their founder journey.PS: they share fabulous money management tips on Instagram as well 😎 This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
"To get my mission of accessibility out there is not a problem of having the right tool, or developers needing to find the right tool — but rather teaching them all the benefits of accessibility."This week’s guest Charlie Morris is on a mission to help startups, indie makers, and even BigCos make their websites and products more accessible for everyone.Since joining the #BuildInPublic community on X late last year, he’s launched several indie-oriented products, an agency focused on accessibility and heaps more.All on top of his regular 9-5 and also co-founding a mushroom farm with his partner last year 🍄Here’s what we uncover in this show:* Charlie’s motivation to grow awareness around accessibility and to do all this in public.* The details of what it means to have ‘good’ accessibility, how to test it and why it’s a constant improvement journey.* What major sites or products we can look at as great examples to learn from.* How the mushroom farm inspired Charlie to start his indie maker journey.And a lot more. Here are Charlie’s products that you should definitely check out:* A11yAudit.ing — Run a free test on your site and get your accessibility score + tips to improve each factor.* Indie Filter — Free Chrome extension to find indie tools on Product Hunt.* Colour Easy — Generate fabulous colour palettes for your site or brand.* QRuickly — Make lovely QR codes in a snap.Find us on your favorite podcast player HERE This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
Back with a fresh site, Hai and the Wudpecker team are here to extract all the important bits from your meetings both online and in-person — so you can focus on the meeting itself.Today we have look at the website, break down the messaging and dig through some of the free resources they share. Honestly, I couldn’t find much not to like about the site, copy or value proposition. I’ll try to make a few more roasty roasts next time.Anyway, follow Hai on X for more info about the relaunch and check out Wudpecker’s site if you have meetings to remember! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
From the outside, concerts look like a party on the road every night. But the truth is each tour is run like a business and the tools to organize every stop were not quite fit for the purpose. That meant inefficiency, money wasted and in the worst cases, unhappy fans & artists. Ternwheel's here to turn that around and Ashanti brings the skills, support and network to make it happen. We got into: • His start in the music industry and landing in San Francisco to chase his idea for Ternwheel • How live shows are coming back and why they're the main revenue driver for artists. • The long road from ideas to a launched SaaS and what bumps were on the way. • Fundraising, the launch and Ashanti's vision of success in the near future. We're proud our team has helped bring the best v1 of Ternwheel to life and can't wait to see what we can build it into going forward with Ashanti. The show has just begun 🤘 This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
You all know the pain — you google a recipe and find a bunch of long-winded SEO optimized foodie blog articles that may have a decent recipe buried somewhere under all the keywords and ads.It sucks, but that's what it takes to stay up top on google.Thanks to Ethan Chlebowski we now have a better option — CookWell.comDirectories and info-products are having a bit of a moment, and I think Cook Well is a fabulous example that other founders and creators can learn from.Here's why:• You land on the page and the recipes are right there, product-led in a way.• The v1 is hella comprehensive, definitely not an MVP but a full, organized resource.• You learn while using the product.So enjoy this fresh roast of CookWell and check out the product next time you need inspiration in the kitchen. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
Zeng’s got so many AI projects going on it was hard to decide where to focus without this turning into a 4-hour chat (which would be lovely). But we managed to scratch the surface and, in my opinion, this is almost all one can do in terms of AI right now. The pace of change is furious, tools pop up and disappear too fast to fixate long on ‘the state of things’ now. ‘Cause tomorrow it’s gonna be different, and we both hope, better.Here’s what we uncovered:🐾 Zeng’s memories from the early days of AI art — being trolled and learning tricks to prompt beauty.🔎 How she curates tools to share with her PicAisso community⚒️ What tools creators and founders can use to quickly generate useful brand assets for their new product ideas🫤 The dark side of AI — what we shouldn’t make!While you enjoy the show, I highly recommend you check out some of Zeng’s own tools, products and content: • Picaisso is both an amazing art prompt maker and her newsletter.• FemmeStock is a lovely service of feminine stock photos created by Zeng.• Here’s a great collection of 100 banner images for social media and more.That’s just a start, go check out her bio page to find lots more 💜 This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
Flipner AI might be just the solution you're looking for. But can it deliver on that promise? Find out where I see Flipner's potential and what the founder could improve ahead of the Product Hunt launch on Jan 25th. Here are my main tips for Alex:* Replace ‘texts’ as the cover-all outcome — specify what kinds of content Flipner will help folks create.* Give a few clear before-after examples of how the AI writing assistant helps transform voice transcriptions. There’s a lot of potential here if it does well! Same goes for the style changes from AI, give us some convincing samples.* Condense the 6 listed use-cases down to 3, add a concise header for each and shorten the description texts — people scan these sections so you have to hook ‘em with titles.* Differentiate Flipner from other notes platforms. There are a lot and many of them have AI integrations already. If it’s the voice transcriptions, double-down on that.Check out Flipner.com to sign up! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
“You have to focus on small wins because maybe this week you get 100 impressions, next week you get 150 or a single post that finally gets two replies while the others received no feedback at all.If you see these small wins, these small improvements every week, not every day probably, but every week — you see something.”There are 3 reasons I’m stoked to have Alberto on the show:* His depth of experience and background — anyone who goes as far as completing a PhD in Comp Sci and then decides to write blogs instead simply raises at least one eyebrow in curiosity. But that was (digital) ages ago, he’s been writing and creating on the web since the 00s and still brings joy and passion to it. * The Medium.com experience — while I’ve had writers and marketers on before, Alberto’s the first who has focused on Medium for his long-form content. I wanted to know why and what he’s done to win a following there.* His experiments — one of Alberto’s posts on X caught my eye when he described his test of posting long-form content directly on X for a month instead of Medium. He saw very little engagement on his long posts but got a lot from his reflection on the test. It’s always fun to chat with folks who are experimenting in public.We got into all those topics and much more. If you enjoy Alberto’s perspective on writing online — go check out his free mini-course and Notion template aptly named The Unstoppable Creator. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com
But check it out and you'll see why I'm so stoked for CopyFrame. Roast 'em Gently is a new show where I find upcoming PH launches and break down the product page according to the copy, the value prop and just the overall vibe. And CopyFrame promises a ton of neat features that will make life SO MUCH easier for high-volume copywriters or any folks who launch a lot of new websites or landing pages. Dive in and let us know what you think. Subscribe to CopyFrame's launch to see what it’s all about 🚀 This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit shipandsip.substack.com