Every founder I talk to overcomplicates early growth. They spread themselves across 10 channels, burn cash on paid ads before they have product-market fit, and wonder why nothing sticks.

Here's what I've seen work over and over again for pre-seed to seed startups:

1. Cold outbound that doesn't feel cold

Find 50 people who match your ICP on Twitter/LinkedIn. Don't pitch — ask a question about the problem you solve. 40% will respond, 10% will convert. That's 5 users from an hour of work.

2. Community-first distribution

Find 3 communities where your users already hang out. Become the most helpful person there for 2 weeks before you ever mention your product. When you do, it converts because you've already built trust.

3. Build in public

Share your metrics, your failures, your wins. People root for founders who are transparent. Every post is a top-of-funnel touchpoint.

I break down one of these strategies every week inside ScaleKit — full playbook, templates, and real examples from founders who executed them.