I’m testing Google Ads before building my SaaS — here’s why (and how)

Most indie hackers make this mistake:

They build a product — then try to find customers.

I’m trying the opposite. I launched a landing page first, and immediately started testing demand with paid ads — even before writing a single line of code.

Why test paid ads now?

Building a product takes time.

And if nobody wants it... all that effort is wasted.

Instead of waiting until launch, I want answers early:

• Are people searching for this kind of product?
• Will they click?
• Will they leave a lead?
• How much will it cost me to get one?

What I did:

1. Built a simple landing page on Framer in one day
2. Set up a €20 test budget on Google Ads
3. Created a form to collect early leads
4. Tracked everything manually — no complex funnel yet

I made a mistake 😅
My first campaign was a Google “Smart” campaign — and it burned €10 showing banners in random mobile apps.

600 useless clicks later, I paused the campaign.

Second try: ✅
I switched to a classic Search campaign, with:

• High-intent keywords
• Simple ad copy
• No display, no video, no smart automation

The result? Lower traffic — but real, relevant visitors. And a few leads.

Why this works

Even with €10–20, I got signal:

• People are searching for this
• I’m getting a few signups
• And I can start estimating my customer acquisition cost

This will help me decide:

• Is this idea worth building?
• What pricing makes sense?
• What channels work best?

Next steps
Some users have already signed up.
In my next post, I’ll share what to do when you don’t have a product yet, but people want in.

(Hint: talk to them — don’t ghost them.)

Let me know if you're testing your own SaaS ideas too — I'd love to hear your approach!