Software Consulting to Software Product

Last week, I was catching up with an entrepreneur, and his story was one I’ve heard many times before. He has always enjoyed technology. He started in the tech world, decided to go out on his own to do software consulting, and then one of his clients requested a solution that turned into a product.

I’ve heard this general consulting-to-specific-product story so many times that it strikes me as the ideal path for someone passionate about technology and software development but who doesn’t have a specific product idea yet. While software development might seem straightforward with the advent of low-code, no-code, AI copilot tools, and offshore development, it remains incredibly difficult for companies to build software products and get them to market.

My own journey took this path. I started consulting with small businesses as a web designer during the Dot Com days. That lead to more complex web apps followed by my first product company (web content management) and then my second (marketing automation). Consulting helped me develop my software engineering and sales skills.

For entrepreneurs, going the consulting route is one of the lowest-friction, least capital-intensive ways to start a new business and quickly get to market with customers directly telling you what they want. This approach doesn’t guarantee that a product idea will emerge, but I’ve seen many technologists become entrepreneurs and stumble into a product idea, eventually building an incredible product business.

For tech entrepreneurs who don’t have an idea but want to build software, my recommendation is to start a consulting company, build software for clients, and listen to feedback and market trends. Look for opportunities. One of the best ways to become a software entrepreneur is to start as a software consulting entrepreneur.