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The First 10
Why "Launch Big" is a trap
Jaime Solis
07 Nov
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“The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” — Chinese Proverb
The Red Thread This Week
The First 10
Earlier this week, my friend Jonathan Sasse and I launched our new podcast, Slackers.
No PR blitz. No hype campaign on social. No countdown clock.
Just two builders who’ve spent decades in the trenches, talking about how to make work better, who decided to hit “publish.”
And honestly? I wasn’t too concerned about the launch.
After 20+ years in music/media, I’ve seen just about every type of “launch”, “tentpole release”, and “grand unveiling” you can think of.
Some were absolutely spectacular (Jay-Z and Kanye battling on 40ft risers to hype a new music service at SXSW), but most were forgettable.
Here’s what I’ve learned: the launch almost never matters as much as we think it does.
What matters is whether the 10 people who show up first care enough to tell someone else.
If they don’t, no amount of ad spend can save you.
If they do, you don’t need it.
See, we’ve been taught that success requires spectacle — that if you can’t make a BIG splash, don’t bother jumping in.
That’s a lie. And it’s an expensive one for creators without venture budgets or PR teams.
Because most things that truly make an impact and last, don’t start with fireworks.
They start with 10 people who care, then twenty, then a hundred.
So the Red Thread this week is about why “First 10” beats “Launch Big” every time—
and how to build something that spreads because it’s worth spreading, not because you bought attention.
~ Jaime
🔑 The Unlock
Why “First 10” Works
Remember, the pressure to “go big” came from people who needed to sell fast and disappear.
1️⃣ The Traveling Salesman
Before mass media—print, radio, tv—you had two ways to sell something:
Set up shop in town, and build trust over years.
Or…roll in, make noise, sell hard, and vanish before complaints arrived.
That second option needed spectacle—medicine shows, carnival barkers, advance men plastering posters everywhere.
They invented “launch big” because they had one shot.
But you’re not leaving town. You’re building something that’s meant to stay.
So ignore that playbook.
2️⃣ The TV Trap
In the 1960s and 70s, there were only 3 major TV networks here in the US.
And they thought a lot about people changing the channel.
Because if you changed the channel, you were headed to 1 of 2 network competitors, and you risked losing them forever.
As a result, a lot of shows literally spent the first minute singing the entire premise of the show!
”Here’s the story, of man named Brady…”
The Brady Bunch, Gilligan’s Island, The Beverly Hillbillies.
All of them willingly burned precious airtime re-explaining the show, afraid you’d tune out.
That wasn’t storytelling. That was fear of being forgotten.
And it wired us to think all launches must hook everyone at once, immediately.
But today, just because every social media guru and YouTube “consultant” pushes “hook in the first 3 seconds” tactics…the internet doesn’t erase your work after one airing.
You can iterate in public. Improve in real time. Build slow, and don’t worry about splashy.
3️⃣ The Kickstarter Confusion
Kickstarter campaigns are funny things, because they can look like grand launches, but they’re actually harvests.
Every “overnight success” there began months or years earlier: someone building trust with a small group, inviting feedback, earning co-creator status.
Then they launched.
The Kickstarter campaign wasn’t the beginning; it was the finish line.
As Kevin Kelly wrote, you don’t need millions—just a thousand true fans.
Start with ten.
4️⃣ The “First 10” Approach
Stop asking, “How do I reach everyone?”
Start asking, “How do I serve 10 people so well, they can’t help but tell others?”
If those 10 don’t share your work, you’ve learned something vital:
Either you picked the wrong 10, or
Your work isn’t ready yet.
Both are fixable—but not by just piling on thoughtless promotion.
The beauty of “First 10” is its simplicity: no budget, no platform, just people.
When you find 10 who care, you’ve found proof of concept.
📌 Remember: The goal isn’t to be seen by everyone. It’s to matter to someone.
💡 Creative Edge
Google Knew
In 2004, Google’s co-founder Sergey Brin said this:
“We don’t do outbound marketing. We know everyone will use Google eventually, and every day Google gets better. Why rush people to try it now when tomorrow’s version will be better?”
That’s clear-eyed strategy.
A lot of builders and creators do the opposite. They chase early attention at the expense of building a habit of continuously delivering the work.
I’ve seen it over and over again in media: big launches, modest results, early give-up.
But…if you can make it to episode 20, the content gets better, and your audience compounds.
The same pattern shows up everywhere:
Restaurants and eateries that open quietly, refine the menu, then earn word-of-mouth.
Software that launches in private beta, iterates with real users, then scales (Dropbox grew through invitations, not ads).
Newsletters that grow one forward at a time because each issue is worth forwarding.
The common thread?
They optimize for sustained effort, and being worth talking about.
📌 Mindset shift: Your job isn’t to convince everyone you’re worth their time.
It’s to prove to 10 people that you are—then let them convince the next 10.
🎲 Prompt Playground
Find Your First 10
Use this to identify who your first 10 are—and what would make them spread your work.
Copy + paste the prompt below into your AI tool of choice (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, etc.) and fill in the blanks.
Prompt:
I want to identify my "First 10"—the specific people who would benefit most from my work and be most likely to share it.
What I'm building: [your project, content, or service]
The problem it solves: [specific pain point or need]
Who I think it's for: [your current audience hypothesis]
Where these people already gather: [specific communities or spaces]
Help me get specific:
Describe my ideal "First 10" in detail (psychographics, not demographics).
Identify three places I can find them right now.
What could I create that would make them want to tell someone else?
Give me one action I can take this week to reach them and get feedback.
✅ Bonus: "If my First 10 don’t share my work, what are the three most likely reasons, and how can I test which one is true?"
📔 Field Notes
My internet this week:
In the wake of the massive AWS outage, Ben Thompson’s excellent piece on Resiliency and Scale — Stratechery
NEW: Creator Spotlight’s Monetization Trend Report — Creator Spotlight
Weighing layoffs? Cut Costs, Not Capabilities — Gartner
Perplexity Integrates 'Answer Engine' in $400M Deal With Snap — MediaPost
History: Antitrust Laws and the New Monopoly Game [video] — The Current
Apple Podcasts Generating Automatic Links and Chapters — The Verge
🛠️ Creator Tools
PostEverywhere – Post all your content across all socials, in seconds
Cambium – Create your small business growth plan with AI powered research + GTM strategy.
SpotScribe – Extract Spotify podcast transcripts instantly.
GenPPT – AI presentation tool for deep, research-backed slides
💼 Open Opportunities
Head of Marketing, Digital Marketing – Glassnote Records (NYC) View Role →
Senior Manager, Content Strategy – Oxford Road (remote) View Role →
Your next move in Music
Explore the MBW Job Board →
Crack into Podcasting
Check out the Sounds Profitable Job Board →
📌 Know someone looking? Forward this to them!
⚡ Before You Go
Here are 3 ways I can help:
🗓️ Get 1:1 Support from Me: Need a thought partner to help shape what's next for your project or team? Let’s talk.
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Thanks for spending time with Red Threads this week, I’m glad you’re here :)
~ Jaime