[JOURNEY] Starting to build my own SaaS as a developer

[Duda Soft]

Building a Side Project – Sharing the Journey

Hi everyone,
I wanted to share a small journey I’ve recently started.
This is not a launch post and not a promo. I’m simply documenting the process while I build something I personally need.

The project started around a very common but underestimated problem: domains.
Tracking them, creating and following wishlists, price comparison, checking availability, thinking of names, dealing with expirations, renewals, and last-minute surprises.

So I decided to build a focused tool around this space.

What the project is about (high level)
At its core, the project revolves around three main ideas:

• Helping people generate better domain names using AI
• Checking domain availability across multiple TLDs is extremely fast
• Tracking domains in a wishlist, checking their availability, and getting notified

The goal is not to create a “do everything” platform, but rather something that feels lightweight, practical, and genuinely useful during the early stages of building a product or brand.

I’m intentionally keeping feature details minimal for now.

Why I started this

• Coming up with good names is harder than it looks
• Most name generators feel generic or disconnected from real availability
• TLD checks are often slow, fragmented, or limited
• I wanted instant feedback: idea → name → availability

This project started as a personal tool and slowly evolved into something bigger.

Current milestones

Milestone 1 – Concept & Scope (Completed)

• Clear problem definition
• Focused feature set
• Technical direction decided

Milestone 2 – AI Name Generation (Completed / Improving)

• AI-assisted name suggestions
• Brandable and readable outputs
• Filters based on intent and tone

Milestone 3 – Ultra-fast TLD Checks (In Progress)

• Bulk availability checks
• Multiple TLD support (up to 1k - No API calls - No limits)
• Optimized for speed and scale

Milestone 4 – Dashboard & Flow (Next)

• Simple and clean interface
• Idea → name → availability in one flow
• Minimal friction

Open questions (would love feedback)
I’m still shaping parts of the product, so I’d really appreciate thoughts on things like:

• When generating names, what matters more: creativity or availability?
• Do you usually check one TLD or many at once?
• Is speed more important than deep domain metadata?
• Would you use something like this solo, or in a team/agency setup?

What’s next

I’ll keep sharing updates as milestones are completed.
Some ideas may change, some may be removed completely.
That’s part of the process.

If you’ve struggled with naming, domain hunting, or missed a good domain because you were too late, I’d love to hear your experience.
This is not only about domains, but I'll also plan to add SSL & Hosting tracking/monitoring to this project.

Feedback, criticism, and different perspectives are all welcome.

 

[Elon Snup]

Following this. Domain management is one of those problems that seems simple but gets messy fast once you have 20+ domains across different registrars.

Few questions as you build:
- How are you handling the pricing data across registrars? Scraping or APIs?
- What's your take on the AI name generation - are you fine-tuning for specific niches or keeping it general?
- Any thoughts on monetization yet? Free tier + paid watchlist limits?

The lightweight approach makes sense. Most tools in this space try to do too much and end up clunky. Rooting for you.

 

[Duda Soft]

Following this. Domain management is one of those problems that seems simple but gets messy fast once you have 20+ domains across different registrars.

Few questions as you build:
- How are you handling the pricing data across registrars? Scraping or APIs?
- What's your take on the AI name generation - are you fine-tuning for specific niches or keeping it general?
- Any thoughts on monetization yet? Free tier + paid watchlist limits?

The lightweight approach makes sense. Most tools in this space try to do too much and end up clunky. Rooting for you.

Thanks a lot, really appreciate the support.
You described the problem perfectly. Once you pass a certain number of domains, things stop being “simple” very quickly.

Let me answer your questions one by one.

Pricing data across registrars
For the MVP, I’m starting with scraping. It gives me speed and flexibility early on.
Longer term, the plan is to move toward official APIs where available, and reach out to registrars that don’t offer public APIs to see what’s possible. I don’t want this to be fragile forever, but scraping is the most pragmatic starting point.

AI name generation
I’m leaning toward a semi-focused approach.
The user defines the topic or niche, and the system generates brandable, relevant names within that context. Availability is part of the loop, not an afterthought.
Users can choose their preferred TLDs, and the system will also suggest additional TLDs when it makes sense.

Monetization
Yes, I’ve started thinking about it early to avoid painting myself into a corner later.
For general visitors, the idea is content-driven discovery plus affiliate revenue.
For registered users, a freemium model with limits, paid subscriptions for higher usage, and separate plans for agencies with custom limits and pricing. Also, agencies will have a more detailed dashboard.

Totally agree with your last point as well. The biggest risk in this space is trying to solve everything at once. I’m intentionally keeping the scope tight and useful before expanding.

Really appreciate the questions; this kind of feedback helps shape the product in the right direction.

 

[Proxy Cake]

I'm not sure if this is a common problem that people will actually pay for, are you sure there's a market for this?

 

[Duda Soft]

I'm not sure if this is a common problem that people will actually pay for, are you sure there's a market for this?

That’s a very fair question, and honestly, I’m asking myself the same thing constantly.
I’m not blindly assuming this is a massive subscription market. That’s actually why I’m not building the revenue model around subscriptions only.
The monetization strategy is intentionally diversified.

For casual users or one-time visitors, the plan is to monetize through content + affiliate partnerships with registrars. A lot of people just want to find a name and register it. If I can make that process smoother and faster, affiliate revenue makes sense without forcing them into a subscription.

For power users, people managing 20+ domains, agencies, builders, and indie hackers, that’s where freemium + paid tiers come in. Higher limits, watchlists, monitoring, bulk checks, AI-powered name generator, etc.
So even if only a small percentage converts to paid plans, the affiliate layer supports the broader traffic.

If the subscription demand turns out to be weaker than expected, the project can still stand on the affiliate + content side. And if power users show strong demand, I can lean more into SaaS.

 

[Proxy Cake]

That’s a very fair question, and honestly, I’m asking myself the same thing constantly.
I’m not blindly assuming this is a massive subscription market. That’s actually why I’m not building the revenue model around subscriptions only.
The monetization strategy is intentionally diversified.

For casual users or one-time visitors, the plan is to monetize through content + affiliate partnerships with registrars. A lot of people just want to find a name and register it. If I can make that process smoother and faster, affiliate revenue makes sense without forcing them into a subscription.

For power users, people managing 20+ domains, agencies, builders, and indie hackers, that’s where freemium + paid tiers come in. Higher limits, watchlists, monitoring, bulk checks, AI-powered name generator, etc.
So even if only a small percentage converts to paid plans, the affiliate layer supports the broader traffic.

If the subscription demand turns out to be weaker than expected, the project can still stand on the affiliate + content side. And if power users show strong demand, I can lean more into SaaS.

That sounds like a solid idea. I would say, build the most absolute bare bones MVP version first and try get some users and feedback then go from there

 

[Duda Soft]

Here is an example of the dashboard that I just created:

 

[youneskkc]

• When generating names, what matters more: creativity or availability?
• Do you usually check one TLD or many at once?
• Is speed more important than deep domain metadata?
• Would you use something like this solo, or in a team/agency setup?

1. Both, but if I have to choose I will go with the availability.
2. Many at once.
3. When brainstorming and doing preliminary market search: speed; when the decision is made (of launching a product or company for example): deep metadata
4. Solo as a indie consultant.

Is there any chance you can add searching in WIPO trademark data? That would be interesting feature I think.

Good luck with your SaaS I love indie hacker building in public.

 

[soa0611]

Great idea! I would use it 100%

 

[DeathGrips]

this is a great idea. solving a real problem. monetization is trivial (domain/hosting affiliate + maybe premium accounts) but the real question is - how will you market it?

 

[Duda Soft]

1. Both, but if I have to choose I will go with the availability.
2. Many at once.
3. When brainstorming and doing preliminary market search: speed; when the decision is made (of launching a product or company for example): deep metadata
4. Solo as a indie consultant.

Is there any chance you can add searching in WIPO trademark data? That would be interesting feature I think.

Good luck with your SaaS I love indie hacker building in public.

Love this breakdown, super helpful.

1. Makes sense, availability first. No point falling in love with a name that’s taken.
2. Noted on bulk checks. That’s definitely a priority.
3. I like that split: speed for ideation, deep metadata for decision mode. That’s actually very aligned with how I’m thinking about the flow.
4. A solo indie consultant is exactly one of the core personas I have in mind.

Regarding the WIPO trademark search, yes, I’ve thought about it. Integrating trademark data (like WIPO) would be a strong addition, especially in the “decision mode” phase. It adds real validation beyond just domain availability. It’s not in the MVP, but definitely on the roadmap if the demand is there.

Really appreciate the thoughtful feedback

Great idea! I would use it 100%

Appreciate your feedback! I would like to inform you when the MVP is available

this is a great idea. solving a real problem. monetization is trivial (domain/hosting affiliate + maybe premium accounts) but the real question is - how will you market it?

That’s the real question, 100%.
I agree, building is the fun part, distribution is the hard part.
My initial plan is:

• Build in public and share the journey in relevant communities
• Create SEO-driven content around naming + domain research
• Target indie hackers, solo builders, and small agencies first

I’m not planning to run paid ads from day one. I’d rather validate demand organically and see where traction naturally comes from.
If you had to market something like this from scratch, where would you start?

 

[harpage]

Helping people generate better domain names using AI

I can say that this is a good project but you should have freebies attached for those who use the platform. That will attract a lot of people.

 

[DeathGrips]

Love this breakdown, super helpful.

1. Makes sense, availability first. No point falling in love with a name that’s taken.
2. Noted on bulk checks. That’s definitely a priority.
3. I like that split: speed for ideation, deep metadata for decision mode. That’s actually very aligned with how I’m thinking about the flow.
4. A solo indie consultant is exactly one of the core personas I have in mind.

Regarding the WIPO trademark search, yes, I’ve thought about it. Integrating trademark data (like WIPO) would be a strong addition, especially in the “decision mode” phase. It adds real validation beyond just domain availability. It’s not in the MVP, but definitely on the roadmap if the demand is there.

Really appreciate the thoughtful feedback

Appreciate your feedback! I would like to inform you when the MVP is available


That’s the real question, 100%.
I agree, building is the fun part, distribution is the hard part.
My initial plan is:

• Build in public and share the journey in relevant communities
• Create SEO-driven content around naming + domain research
• Target indie hackers, solo builders, and small agencies first

I’m not planning to run paid ads from day one. I’d rather validate demand organically and see where traction naturally comes from.
If you had to market something like this from scratch, where would you start?

difficult question. I would figure out how to appeal to primal emotions in people with my offer (making money) and start crafting narratives on social media/indie hackers/reddit etc

 

[Duda Soft]

I can say that this is a good project but you should have freebies attached for those who use the platform. That will attract a lot of people.

Exactly, there will be a free option for the users who don't want to subscribe. And the limits won't prevent users from using the platform.

difficult question. I would figure out how to appeal to primal emotions in people with my offer (making money) and start crafting narratives on social media/indie hackers/reddit etc

Thanks for the feedback. I'll probably follow this way. Twitter will be the first place that I'm gonna post on, as there are many examples that I saw that reached thousands of people with a single popular post

 

[soa0611]

Create SEO-driven content around naming + domain research

Multiple websites referring to your product

You can build them on expired domains + AI content, check ZionIce journey, he orders all on Fiverr

 

[Duda Soft]

Multiple websites referring to your product

You can build them on expired domains + AI content, check ZionIce journey, he orders all on Fiverr

Thanks for your good feedback. I've checked that, and it seems inspiring, I'll follow a similar way

 

[Rufai]

This is a good idea and I think this is a problem many of us in IM face. Lately I've been trying to come up with a good domain name. Tried using AI but most of the ones I liked are already taken. Tried using domain name generators but they are just not creative.
So if you will be able to build something that generates good domain names based on idea/business descriptions and check availability, then I think that'll be a game changer. To answer your questions:

• When generating names, what matters more: creativity or availability?

I prefer both

• Do you usually check one TLD or many at once?

One TLD

• Is speed more important than deep domain metadata?

I don't know what that means.

• Would you use something like this solo, or in a team/agency setup?

Both

 

[Duda Soft]

This is a good idea and I think this is a problem many of us in IM face. Lately I've been trying to come up with a good domain name. Tried using AI but most of the ones I liked are already taken. Tried using domain name generators but they are just not creative.
So if you will be able to build something that generates good domain names based on idea/business descriptions and check availability, then I think that'll be a game changer. To answer your questions:

I prefer both

One TLD

I don't know what that means.


Both

Thanks for your great feedback!
The main issue is being creative when generating domain names. I'll also provide information on the status of domains, such as Backlinks, Spam Score, etc. This will also help people with researching a PBN domain.

 

[CyberShaman]

This is actually a good idea. I been searching for good domain names and ChatGPT has been helping me but usually shows domain names already taken. Good luck

 

[Duda Soft]

This is actually a good idea. I been searching for good domain names and ChatGPT has been helping me but usually shows domain names already taken. Good luck

Thank you for your reply. I had the same feeling that’s why I wanted to deep dive into it