Ask HN: Critique My SaaS Idea
I'm aiming to build a white-label "Shopify for courses," with only the most basic features (i.e. online course store, members' area, course management back-end, payments processing), and using freemium "Powered by" backlinks to acquire customers (to start). Plus posting on forums and Q&A sites. And targeted at aspiring solopreneurs, not established teachers/instructors/coaches. So these people who still have a day job, not serious full-time course teachers, but want to create a passive income stream or monetize their passion while sharing their knowledge to an audience.
I'll charge $9/mo to start to appeal to this segment (maybe a commission % too), where other solutions start at $39/mo. It probably won't be the most robust solution, but it does allow the aspiring solopreneur to: 1) have their own online course store hosted on their own domain with their personal branding, 2) which is optimized for conversions, and 3) where they don't have to worry about payments, setting up a site, etc. Only on teaching and selling their courses.
Do you think this is a feasible idea?
Is it too crowded and hard to differentiate/niche down?
If you're considering teaching a course, would you be interested in this product?