Pain Point #1: “There will be months at a time where not a single line of code is written and no PRs are reviewed… our software has lagged quite far behind our competitors… Paid pilots are starting in Q4… our software has been completely stagnant… we’re totally unequipped to make that happen.” (Post 23)

Opportunity: Pilot-to-Production SWAT (Emergency CTO + strike team for hardware/IoT)
- A 90‑day “pilot rescue” program that audits your repo this week, rebuilds/ships the missing app pieces, and stands up cloud/CI so your paid pilots don’t slip. Milestone-based contracts tied to your pilot SOWs; on‑call during pilot weeks; option to hire-to-own the team post‑launch.
- Price: $120k–$250k fixed fee per 90 days, with outcome bonus; 0% financing option tied to pilot receipts.

First 10 Customers:
- CEO/Founder at seed-stage IoT/robotics/hardware startups with enterprise pilots within 1–2 quarters.
- VP Product/Eng at industrial sensor or connected device companies needing portal/app rebuild before pilot kickoff.
- Partners/Platform leads at seed funds needing a “pilot panic” turnaround for a portfolio company.
- Head of Innovation at manufacturing/energy firms co-running POCs that require startup software integration.

MVP in 48 Hours:
- Webflow page “Pilot Rescue” + Calendly + Stripe $10k refundable deposit.
- Offer a free 48‑hour GitHub/infra audit with a Loom walkthrough and a 10‑slide rescue plan (milestones, risks, owner-by-owner).
- Assemble bench: 2–3 fractional CTOs + a vetted nearshore squad (Toptal/GitStart/Gun.io).
- Ship one visible win in 48 hours (CI/CD fixed, staging env live, or a critical feature spike) to close first deal.

Justification:
- Demand: The founder’s words are urgent, repeated, and revenue-tied: “months… not a single line of code,” “software… stagnant,” “Paid pilots… we’re totally unequipped.”
- ROI: Saving a single enterprise pilot avoids $250k–$1M in lost bookings and unlocks conversion to multi‑year contracts. A 90‑day rescue vs 6–9 months rehiring saves ~$300k–$600k burn and preserves momentum.
- Scalable: Standardized audit playbooks, template infra, repeatable milestone contracts; 5–10 concurrent clients at $150k+ ACV clears $1M+ quickly; expand bench regionally.
- Purple Cow/Controversial: Money‑back milestone clauses, on‑site during pilot week, and willingness to step into cofounder gaps is rare and slightly taboo—exactly what “pilot panic” teams will pay for now.

---

Pain Point #2: “PMs often have to make key product decisions without direct access to their end users… I think the problem is even more severe in regulated environments like fintech or healthcare, where access to real users is limited.” (Post 8)

Opportunity: Regulated Design Partner Exchange (DPX‑R)
- Compliance-first marketplace that recruits/verified end users (nurses, practice admins, claim adjusters, bank ops, patients), handles consent/BAA/PHI boundaries, and runs moderated sessions your PMs can attend without violating policy. Includes de‑identified transcript vault and “decision trace” artifacts audit teams love.
- Price: $5k/month platform + $150–$300 per session (guarantee 10 qualified sessions in 14 days or credit next month).

First 10 Customers:
- Director/Head of Product at Series A–C healthtech (EHR, care management, RCM).
- Head of Product at fintech B2B SaaS (KYC/AML, risk ops, onboarding).
- UX Research Lead at HIPAA/BAA‑bound digital health startups.
- Innovation teams at hospital systems and mid-market banks/credit unions.

MVP in 48 Hours:
- Typeform intake for startups + Airtable panel of 50 pre‑vetted participants (license-verified clinicians, fintech ops, patients) recruited via professional groups/associations.
- Notion library of attorney-reviewed templates (Consent, DUA, BAA addendum).
- Calendly + Zoom for sessions; Otter.ai for transcripts; manual de‑identification; Stripe for payments and participant incentives.
- Run a 1‑week pilot: 5 sessions at $200 each; deliver de‑identified transcripts + a “decision trace” doc.

Justification:
- Demand: Direct quotes show repeated frustration and risk in regulated spaces: “key product decisions without direct access,” “more severe… fintech or healthcare.”
- ROI: Prevents misbuilt features (often $50k–$200k per cycle), accelerates validation by weeks, and reduces legal/research bottlenecks that stall quarters. For $5k–$15k in a month, teams avoid six‑figure waste and speed PMF.
- Scalable: Two‑sided marketplace + SaaS ops. Panels are reusable; templates and workflows productize. 200 customers x $5k MRR = $12M ARR; variable cost per session declines with panel density.
- Purple Cow/Controversial: “Audit‑ready decision trace” and BAA‑friendly workflows are a sharp wedge. Slightly provocative by enabling research outside traditional IRB, yet stays ethical via consent and de‑identification.

---

Pain Point #3: “We did $2.8M… profit ~ $224K… Card fees ~$47K + ACH ~$23K… Total: $70K gone. That’s 31% of our profit taken.” (Post 20)
Additional signals:
- “yet another small business getting eaten alive by processing fees… be careful to make sure you are jumping through Visa and Mastercard’s hoops.” (Post 10)
- “I have LiquorPOS and I am tired of Heartland’s bullshit on the credit card processing end of things.” (Post 67)

Opportunity: Pay-by-Bank Orchestrator for trades and retail
- Auto-routes each invoice to the cheapest compliant rail (FedNow/RTP/ACH/Level 2/3 cards), with legal dual-pricing and surcharge templates, “pay-by-bank and save 3%” nudges, and a locked-down compliance pack (signage, receipts language, timing rules).
- Guarantee: cut your fee load by 40%+ within 60 days or don’t pay.
- Pricing: $499 setup + $199/month + 10% of verified fee savings (cap $1,500/month), or free setup on a 15% of savings plan for high-volume merchants.

First 10 Customers:
- Controller/CFO at construction subcontractors and GCs doing $1–$20M revenue.
- Office Manager at HVAC/electrical/plumbing companies invoicing customers.
- Owner-operator of liquor stores using LiquorPOS and stuck on Heartland.
- Auto repair shop owners (dealing with shop supplies, legacy POS, tight margins).
- DTC brands doing $250K+/mo card volume looking to roll out “pay by bank.”

MVP in 48 Hours:
- Typeform + Google Drive “Fee Audit”: upload 3 months of processor statements; auto-calc savings in Sheets.
- Hosted invoice page: Stripe (cards) + Plaid/Stripe ACH + clear “Save 3% with bank transfer” toggle. Show per-method fees before pay.
- Twilio SMS link to invoice + email reminders. Manual reconciliation into QuickBooks via CSV first.
- Deliver compliant dual-pricing/surcharge signage PDFs + receipt language (from card brand rules). Do it manually first.

Justification:
- Demand: Multiple posts complain about fees and processor lock-in: “$70K gone… 31% of profit,” “getting eaten alive,” “tired of Heartland’s bullshit.” Clear repeated frustration.
- ROI: If a contractor cuts fees from $70K to $35K, that’s +$35K profit (instant). On 8% margins, that’s like adding $437K revenue without more jobs.
- Scalable: Works as a software overlay on invoices/hosted checkout; repeatable playbooks by vertical; channel partners (ISOs, CPAs, POS resellers). No heavy services bottleneck once templates/process are set.
- Purple Cow/Controversial: “Savings-or-free” fee model, hard compliance baked in (surcharging/dual pricing), dynamic rail routing (ACH/FedNow vs. card) at the invoice level. Most merchant services don’t expose fee-by-method at checkout with a guarantee.