Here's something that keeps most founders up at night: pouring months into building the perfect product, only to launch to silence.
The issue isn't the product. It's that nobody knew who you were before you asked them to care about what you built.
The Backwards Approach Most Companies Take
We've been taught a simple formula: build something great, and people will come. Create the best solution, and customers will find you.
Except that's not how it works anymore. The market is too noisy. There are too many good products. And attention is the hardest thing to get.
And it's getting even harder. In today's AI world, anyone can build a product. Tools are faster, easier, and cheaper than ever. The barrier to creating something isn't technical anymore, it's trust. When everyone can build, the only question that matters is: who do people believe in?
Most companies spend 90% of their energy on the product and 10% on the brand. Then they wonder why their brilliant solution gets ignored while weaker products with stronger brands win the market.
What "Brand Before Product" Actually Means
This isn't about making a logo or having a catchy slogan. It's about building trust and recognition before you ask for a sale.
Think about the companies you admire. Chances are, you followed their journey before you bought from them. You read their content, connected with their ideas, or believed in their mission. By the time they launched, you were already sold.
That's brand before product.
It means showing up consistently with a point of view. It means being helpful and generous with your knowledge before you ever pitch. It means people know what you stand for before they know what you sell.
Why This Approach Wins
When you build your brand first, several things happen:
You create an audience that's ready to buy. These aren't strangers you have to convince. They're people who already trust you and understand your thinking. When you launch, they're ready.
You get instant feedback on what to build. Your audience tells you what they struggle with, what they need, and what they'd pay for. You're not guessing. You're building exactly what your market wants.
You reduce customer costs to nearly zero. When people already know and trust you, you don't need expensive ads or pushy sales. Your brand does the work.
You build something that can't be copied. Products get copied. Features get replicated. But a strong brand with deep relationships? That's nearly impossible to duplicate.
How to Actually Do This
Start by picking your platform and showing up consistently. Write, record, post, or share. Not occasionally. Not when you feel like it. Consistently.
Share what you know. Teach what you've learned. Give away your best ideas for free. This feels backward, but generosity builds trust faster than anything else.
Have a perspective. Don't just repeat what everyone else is saying. What do you believe that others don't? What are you willing to stand for? Your unique point of view is what makes you memorable.
Be patient. This isn't a one-month plan. Building a brand takes time. But here's the thing: that time passes whether you're building or not. Start now.
The Proof Is Everywhere
Look at the most successful product launches of the past decade. They almost all followed this pattern. The founders built audiences first, then asked those audiences what they needed.
They had thousands of people waiting to buy on day one, not because they had the perfect product, but because they had already proven themselves worth paying attention to.
Your Move
Stop waiting until your product is perfect. Start building your brand today.
Share what you're learning. Document your process. Be helpful to people before you ask them for anything.
Because when you finally launch, you won't be talking to strangers. You'll be speaking to an audience that's already listening.
And that makes all the difference.
With grit and gratitude, The Gritter
