B2B (business to business)

Thesis

If you want durable income as an indie founder, a focused B2B product gives you better odds than B2C because pricing power, retention, and distribution are structurally in your favor.

Who B2B is for

Solo founders and 2–3 person teams without a large audience, working with limited time and budget.

TL;DR

B2C: crowded, small checks, high churn; only works with strong distribution, capital, or a unique idea.
B2B: niche down, charge for value, various automatization opportunities; founder-led sales beat mass marketing early.
Math: LTV/CAC is higher in B2B.
If you can’t win B2C distribution, pivot to a narrow B2B pain where you can win.

Intro

Most makers default to B2C because it feels simple: solve your own problem, ship fast, get quick validation. But simplicity up front hides brutal economics later. If your goal is financial independence, B2B usually gives you better odds. The idea is secondary to distribution, pricing power, and retention.

Problem: The B2C trap

Huge competition: You fight indies launching similar apps every week, plus defaults from Big Tech (Apple Notes, Google Keep) and funded players (e.g., Notion reportedly spent >$7M on marketing in 2022).
AI increases the competition: Cheap cloning and faster iteration spawns lookalikes every day.
Low willingness to pay: Individuals rarely spend more than a few dollars per month. App Annie (2021) estimated about $11.50/month per active iPhone across all apps.
Functional utilities struggle; entertainment wins: Consumers reward dopamine and novelty. If you’re not entertaining, you’re effectively competing as a “dopamine dealer.”
Low retention: Individuals buy wants, not needs. When motivation fades; habits and learning apps are abandoned. You must constantly add value (templates, events, integrations) just to keep churn in check.
Winner-takes-all: B2C often consolidates around a few leaders. Being the best is a mandatory.
Distribution is expensive: To stand out, you need to constantly create viral reels. It requires talent, time, and money.

Why people still choose B2C:

Idea generation feels easy: Solve your own problems (notes, habits, finance, screenshots, time tracking) and you know the feature set.
Consumer markets are intuitive to understand and discuss.
Low price feels like low friction: Cheaper offers seem like quicker wins. Fast gratification is easily achievable.
Massive market size creates the illusion of big money.
Easy to reach buyers: They’re everywhere. Another source of the fast-gratification trap.
It’s fun: You can try new tech, friends can applaud, and it’s easy to show off.

When B2C can work:

You can create viral content (TikTok, reels, tweets).
You own a distribution channel (e.g., a YouTube audience).
You are a celebrity and have millions of fans.
You have budget and expertise for paid acquisition.
You are a genius and know how to change the market to win it all.
You just want to have fun and don’t like money.

Why B2B is a better bet

More problems to solve: Businesses have countless processes that can be automated.
Niching down works in B2B: Higher checks make small markets viable. Example: CRM for corporate travel agencies. Suppose there are ~10,000 globally; capture 1% at $100/month → ~$10,000 MRR. Giants like Salesforce/Zoho won’t tailor ads and features for every micro-vertical. You can.
Easier to sell: Buyers actively seek optimizations because competition forces them to. If they don’t modernize, competitors will.
Flexible pricing: Charge for seats, usage, AI credits, integrations, or traffic. A $300/year base plus a $3,000 one-time integration is normal.
Bigger checks: If you save a business $500/month, they’ll pay $400/month.
“Good enough” is enough: Companies buy needs; consumers buy excitement. In B2B, a product just above average can still win if it solves the pain.
Better retention: Teams avoid churn when workflows depend on your tool. Unicorn Platform had been using Uploadcare (an image hosting SaaS) from 2019 to 2024. They did not switch from it because it just worked. The LTV is over $10K! John Rush (the maker who bought Unicorn Platform from Alexander Isora) preferred spending valuable time of developers on providing new features and integrations, rather than cutting a few hundred of bucks per month.

Evidence and examples

Makers prefer B2C: A research showed ~69.8% prefer starting B2C, explaining the crowding.
Proven B2B pivots: Paw (Mac API testing) switched from B2C licenses to B2B subscriptions and grew to ~$50k MRR after the pivot (Indie Hackers source).
“Boring” B2B wins: A screenshot tool selling to enterprises sustains ~$400k/year by meeting security needs and running a real sales process. Harder than B2C, but durable.

Conclusion

B2C is tempting but unforgiving: low checks, intense competition, and poor retention. B2B lets you niche down, set a good price for value, and compound retention. If you want the highest chance at durable income, build for businesses.