I Make $15K/Month With 2 AI Apps

Fernando Pessagno

• Background and origin story
  • Originally a designer from Argentina, later living in Sweden.
  • Started his journey as an agency owner working with clients for over a decade.
  • Entrepreneurial dreams paused when he returned to a 9-to-5 job.
  • After unexpectedly being fired, he decided to go all in on building his own products.
• Pivotal moments and turning points
  • Committed to a public 10-day building challenge to ship an MVP for AI carousels.
  • Launched a barebone product to validate demand quickly and reduce attachment to any single idea.
  • First five paying customers validated the opportunity despite a buggy product, prompting him to double down.
  • Relaunched Resume Maker as a SaaS, shifting from one-time purchases to subscriptions for more predictable revenue.
• Business growth, current status, or exit details (only if discussed)
  • Runs two products full-time as a solopreneur while working about 4 hours a day.
  • Achieved roughly $15,000 per month in combined revenue across both products.
  • Maintains profit margins above 90% with around $1,000 in monthly costs and no employees.

Products and Offerings

• Core product(s) and what each one does
  • Resume Maker Online: Promoted as the easiest way to build a resume with a one-button, fast-preview experience.
  • AA.com (AI Carousels): The first AI carousel generator, enabling users to create standout social media carousels without design skills.
• Supporting tools, side projects, or experiments mentioned
  • Built approximately 30 free tools as natural extensions to drive complementary traffic to his main products.
  • Launched an affiliate program for both products to expand distribution.

Metrics and Financials

• Revenue figures, user counts, and financial milestones
  • Combined revenue of about $15,000 per month across both products.
  • Initial launch for AI Carousels secured five paying users quickly.
• Software costs and resource efficiency
  • Monthly business costs around $1,000 with profit margins above 90%.
  • Operates solo with occasional freelance help for time-consuming content tasks.
• Exit or acquisition specifics (if explicitly stated)
  • Not discussed.

Strategy and Growth

• Overall vision and positioning
  • Targets highly specific niches within large markets, aiming to serve a small portion exceptionally well.
  • Positions products as time-saving tools rather than design or complexity-focused solutions.
• Primary growth engine or method
  • SEO is the main channel, supported by free tools that act as traffic gateways.
• Key tactics, channels, or strategic steps
  • Uses Product Hunt launches to gain early visibility and spikes in traffic.
  • Leverages public building and personal storytelling on Twitter and LinkedIn to spread awareness.
  • Focuses on user feedback to guide product direction instead of chasing competitor features.
  • Expanded AI Carousels into a broader toolset to increase retention and reduce churn.

Tech Stack and Infrastructure

• Tools, platforms, and technical approaches referenced
  • Notion for organizing both products.
  • Outta as a no-code platform to handle billing, CRM, subscriptions, and repetitive tasks.
• Notable technical decisions, trade-offs, or architecture choices
  • Prioritizes speed and simplicity by using no-code tools to avoid reinventing basic infrastructure.
  • Launches barebone MVPs quickly to test demand and iterate based on real user feedback.

Lessons and Advice

• Direct advice given to other founders
  • Solve your own problems and focus on making something simpler or faster for users.
  • Aim for small, highly focused solutions that save people time rather than complex feature sets.
  • Embrace being small and personal in communication to build trust and loyalty.
• Hard-won insights and key takeaways
  • Constraints like limited work hours can improve focus and business outcomes.
  • Fast, friendly customer support doubles as a product feature and turns frustrated users into loyal fans.
  • Optimizing for lifestyle and personal well-being can ultimately drive better business results.