Grow with content and SEO
Compound reach with content, search, and a founder audience.
3 steps to get you moving, each with a resource worth your time and more waiting underneath
Think of this as a friendly starting line, not the last word. Each step gives you the gist, then a resource worth your time from founders who've been there. There's always more underneath, more questions and more resources, whenever you feel like digging in.
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1
Content & SEO foundations
Get found by the people already searching.
What is SEO and do I even need it as an early-stage startup?The gist SEO is making your site show up when people search for what you solve, free, compounding traffic over time. It's worth it if your customers actively search for a solution; it's a slow bet, not a launch tactic. If you need customers this month, do outreach; if you're building a moat for next year, start SEO now.
SEO Basics: Beginner's Guide to SEO Success Ahrefs Ahrefs' official, regularly-updated SEO fundamentals guide, a canonical primary source, not blogspam, covering the five things that actually matter. -
2
Social media & personal brand
Build an audience before you need one.
Why should I build a personal brand as a founder?The gist An audience you build before you need it is the cheapest distribution you'll ever have: launches, hiring, and fundraising all get easier when people already trust you. Founder-led content converts because people buy from humans, not logos. Start posting now, well before you have something to sell.
Building an Audience Before You Need One (Julian Shapiro on Lenny's Podcast) Lenny's Podcast A tactical conversation on growth, retention and building a personal audience as distribution, from the founder of Demand Curve who grew large followings himself. -
3
Community-led growth
Turn users into a movement.
What is community-led growth and is it right for my startup?The gist Community-led growth means users create value for each other so the product spreads and retains through belonging, not just features. It's powerful when your product is more useful with peers around it, and a distraction when there's no real reason for users to connect. Don't build a community because it's trendy; build it because your users genuinely benefit from each other.
A Founder's Guide to Community Lenny's Newsletter From the founder of CMX and author of The Business of Belonging, a practical framework for deciding whether to build community and tying it to real business goals.
