Cost of Going Dark: Why Tech Founders Should Keep Building in Public

I made a mistake a few years back. A costly one that I'm only now fully understanding as I try to build my own micro SaaS products.

During the height of the privacy movement, when everyone was talking about deleting Facebook, leaving Twitter, and going off the grid, I bought into it completely. I closed my accounts, went dark, and felt pretty good about myself for "taking back my privacy."

Now I'm starting from absolute zero, and honestly, it hurts.

The Privacy Wave That Swept Me Away

Remember 2018-2019? Cambridge Analytica was all over the news. Everyone was sharing articles about how social media was destroying society. The tech community was having deep conversations about surveillance capitalism, and it all made perfect sense to my technical brain.

I was already skeptical of big tech, already protective of my data. When the movement gained momentum, I didn't just dip my toes in the water. I dove headfirst.

Instagram? Gone. Twitter? Deleted. LinkedIn? Closed. I kept telling myself I was taking a principled stand. I was protecting my privacy. I was refusing to be the product.

And you know what? In terms of privacy, I was probably right. But I completely missed the bigger picture.

The Reality Check

Fast forward to today. I'm building products, creating a SaaS directory, trying to add value to the indie maker community. And I need people to actually know I exist.

Starting from zero followers is brutal. Every post feels like shouting into the void. Every piece of content I create gets maybe five views on a good day. The network effects that could have been compounding for years simply don't exist.

Meanwhile, I watch other founders who kept building in public, who kept sharing their journey, who kept adding value to their communities. They launch a product and have hundreds of people ready to try it on day one. They ask for feedback and get dozens of thoughtful responses within hours.

That's not luck. That's years of relationship building that I opted out of.

What Success Actually Looks Like

The most successful micro SaaS founders I see today didn't just wake up with great products. They built audiences first. They shared their struggles, their wins, their code snippets, their random thoughts about the industry.

Take any indie maker you admire. Go back through their timeline. You'll find years of consistent sharing, helping others, building relationships. By the time they launched their first successful product, they already had a community of people rooting for them.

They understood something I missed: social media isn't just about the platform. It's about the people. It's about building genuine relationships with fellow creators, potential customers, and people who might champion your work.

The Advice I Wish Someone Had Given Me

If you're a technical founder reading this, especially if you're skeptical of social media like I was, here's what I wish someone had told me:

You don't have to love the platforms. You don't have to agree with their business models. You don't even have to be super active. But please, don't go completely dark.

Pick one platform. Just one. Share your work. Help other people solve problems. Build relationships slowly and authentically. Treat it like networking, not social media.

Because here's the thing: when you finally have something to sell, you'll need people who already trust you. You'll need a distribution channel. You'll need advocates.

Building that from scratch when you need it most is like trying to dig a well when you're already dying of thirst.

The Long Game

I'm not saying you need to become an influencer or post every day. I'm saying don't disappear completely. Don't make my mistake.

The founders succeeding with micro SaaS today started building their audiences years ago. They were writing tutorials, sharing insights, helping other developers, and slowly building trust within their communities.

When they launched their products, they didn't launch to strangers. They launched to friends, colleagues, and people who had been following their journey.

That's the distribution advantage I gave up when I went dark. That's the compound effect I'm now trying to rebuild from nothing.

Moving Forward

I can't get those years back, but I can start now. I can begin building relationships, adding value, and slowly earning trust within the community I want to serve.

If you're where I was a few years ago, questioning whether social media is worth it, I hope you'll consider a middle path. You don't have to give up your privacy principles, but don't give up your future distribution channel either.

The technical skills will get you 50% of the way to a successful micro SaaS. The other 50% is having people who care enough to try what you build.

Don't learn this lesson the hard way like I did.