Putting on pause my startup adventure but still talking about a related topic, today I want to bring up something that people do wrong.

Last week, I told you I'd build my first SaaS in the shadows.

It sounds weird for someone who always advocates for building in public, right? My friend Samuele Onelia even said he was shocked because he sees me as a champion of public building.

Yet, I have to disagree.

There are some nuances about building in public that people don't realize. And I'm here to tell you where they slip.

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My personal guide to building in public

If I were to ask you, Build in Public is seen as a way to share updates on what you've done—am I right?

Marc indirectly shared this concept under one of my tweets.

But building in public is not a sharing exercise.

Build in Public is a way to involve your audience and peers and shape the outcome based on their feedback.

Still, it doesn't mean overexposing or being as open as possible.

There's a fine line between what you can or cannot share.

Take my Twitter activity as an example.

If I share too much and competitors see what I'm working on, they will beat me at the speed of light in as little as a day. After all, my MVP is only a feature to add for them.

So, I had to find a way to still involve people in the process without disclosing unique details—like talking about something without talking about it directly.

And this is how I'd draw attention by staying in the shadows.

Frame different content around a single event

Let me give you a couple of nudges to illustrate what I mean.

Say you started streaming a product you're building.

You can share about the new streaming channel, the product you're working on, and the connections made while streaming for the first time.

Or say you have an upcoming course. Instead of promoting it all the time (boring), you could create content around:

• who has joined it,
• what testimonials said,
• a behind-the-scenes video,
• what happened last time (if any),
• the reasons behind your new pricing choices,
• a specific framework you talk about inside the course,
• and so forth.

The whole point of building in public is to create buzz, collect feedback, and get raving fans and supporters.

I also do the same, and here's an example.

Build in private, earn in public

Recently, instead of sharing updates, I shared my:

• struggles (pricing dilemmas),
• decisions (building in the shadows),
• progress (from input to output),
• and questions (abstract or descriptive).

I could go on and on with the examples.

To me, building in public is more of a process than an art.

It's even quite easy to master if you ask.

And I want to give a quick shoutout to my friend and mentor, Kevon, who taught me everything I know about this topic. Without him, my BIP fire would never have sparked.

As a side note, Kevon will host a free Open House event on April 2 if you want to see what's inside his Mastery program.

Now, there's one last thing I want to share with you today.

Building in public is platform-agnostic

We usually see this BIP movement as Twitter-related only.

Yet, this concept applies everywhere as long as people can listen to your story.

So, let me show you something before saying goodbye.

Re-read this issue (or skim it).

Did you spot it already?

Today, I shared behind-the-scenes footage of my process and updates without focusing directly on the product I'm building (but still talking about it).

Did you notice earlier?

And if you were to build in public as of today, what would you do differently?

Have a great Easter weekend,

Mattia

PS: If you want more Build in Public examples, you can find them in The Maker Journey launch Case Study (it's free).