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Aug 31, 2020 · 19m · top-founders

NoCSDegree used HackerNews and ProductHunt to Get 4500 Subs, $15k in Revenue

Pete McLeod · 10m spoken Nathan Latka · 6m spoken Eric Yuan · 4s spoken Vivek Bhaskaran · 2s spoken
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Nathan Latka interviews Pete McLeod, the solo founder of NoCSDegree, discussing how he leveraged viral platform launches on Hacker News and Product Hunt to build a profitable developer media business.

How this conversation actually went

Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Nathan holds 36.1% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Nathan as informed peer 5.3 Guest teaching 2.7 Guest disagreement 2.2 Nathan pushing back 4.2
05100:0010:000:00–3:02 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Episode Preview: Annual Revenue and Financial Goals Nathan introduces Pete after a promotional intro snippet. He quickly digs into the business mechanics and clarifies Pete's Scottish accent when he mentions bootcamps.3:03–5:38 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Monetization Model: Sponsored Content and Bootcamps Nathan presses Pete for exact pricing numbers for sponsored articles. When Pete resists by citing competitive secrecy, Nathan pushes back firmly and demands at least a reasonable range.5:38–8:30 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Scaling Full-Time, Outreach Tactics, and Mentorship Nathan reads out Pete's exact Twitter metrics and revenue milestones to verify them. Pete discusses his growth strategy, inspirations, and learning from mentors like Pat Walls.8:30–11:26 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Hacker News Launch and Conversion Optimization Strategies Nathan drills into the technical conversion funnel from Pete's Hacker News traffic spike. Pete uses a museum analogy to explain exit pop-ups but admits he doesn't have exact conversion percentages handy.11:29–15:09 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Sponsor Break: HostGator Website Hosting Solution After an ad break, Nathan challenges Pete on the unrepeatability of Hacker News virality. Pete acknowledges the role of luck on Hacker News compared to steady community building on Product Hunt.15:10–17:49 · Nathan as informed peer 6/10 Past Product Launches and the Nomad Flights Pivot Nathan reads through Pete's portfolio of past product launches on Product Hunt. Pete educates Nathan on why his Nomad Flights project failed compared to Scott's Cheap Flights due to market niche sizing.0:00–3:02 · Guest teaching 1/10 Episode Preview: Annual Revenue and Financial Goals Nathan introduces Pete after a promotional intro snippet. He quickly digs into the business mechanics and clarifies Pete's Scottish accent when he mentions bootcamps.3:03–5:38 · Guest teaching 2/10 Monetization Model: Sponsored Content and Bootcamps Nathan presses Pete for exact pricing numbers for sponsored articles. When Pete resists by citing competitive secrecy, Nathan pushes back firmly and demands at least a reasonable range.5:38–8:30 · Guest teaching 2/10 Scaling Full-Time, Outreach Tactics, and Mentorship Nathan reads out Pete's exact Twitter metrics and revenue milestones to verify them. Pete discusses his growth strategy, inspirations, and learning from mentors like Pat Walls.8:30–11:26 · Guest teaching 3/10 Hacker News Launch and Conversion Optimization Strategies Nathan drills into the technical conversion funnel from Pete's Hacker News traffic spike. Pete uses a museum analogy to explain exit pop-ups but admits he doesn't have exact conversion percentages handy.11:29–15:09 · Guest teaching 3/10 Sponsor Break: HostGator Website Hosting Solution After an ad break, Nathan challenges Pete on the unrepeatability of Hacker News virality. Pete acknowledges the role of luck on Hacker News compared to steady community building on Product Hunt.15:10–17:49 · Guest teaching 5/10 Past Product Launches and the Nomad Flights Pivot Nathan reads through Pete's portfolio of past product launches on Product Hunt. Pete educates Nathan on why his Nomad Flights project failed compared to Scott's Cheap Flights due to market niche sizing.0:00–3:02 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Episode Preview: Annual Revenue and Financial Goals Nathan introduces Pete after a promotional intro snippet. He quickly digs into the business mechanics and clarifies Pete's Scottish accent when he mentions bootcamps.3:03–5:38 · Guest disagreement 4/10 Monetization Model: Sponsored Content and Bootcamps Nathan presses Pete for exact pricing numbers for sponsored articles. When Pete resists by citing competitive secrecy, Nathan pushes back firmly and demands at least a reasonable range.5:38–8:30 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Scaling Full-Time, Outreach Tactics, and Mentorship Nathan reads out Pete's exact Twitter metrics and revenue milestones to verify them. Pete discusses his growth strategy, inspirations, and learning from mentors like Pat Walls.8:30–11:26 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Hacker News Launch and Conversion Optimization Strategies Nathan drills into the technical conversion funnel from Pete's Hacker News traffic spike. Pete uses a museum analogy to explain exit pop-ups but admits he doesn't have exact conversion percentages handy.11:29–15:09 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Sponsor Break: HostGator Website Hosting Solution After an ad break, Nathan challenges Pete on the unrepeatability of Hacker News virality. Pete acknowledges the role of luck on Hacker News compared to steady community building on Product Hunt.15:10–17:49 · Guest disagreement 3/10 Past Product Launches and the Nomad Flights Pivot Nathan reads through Pete's portfolio of past product launches on Product Hunt. Pete educates Nathan on why his Nomad Flights project failed compared to Scott's Cheap Flights due to market niche sizing.0:00–3:02 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 Episode Preview: Annual Revenue and Financial Goals Nathan introduces Pete after a promotional intro snippet. He quickly digs into the business mechanics and clarifies Pete's Scottish accent when he mentions bootcamps.3:03–5:38 · Nathan pushing back 7/10 Monetization Model: Sponsored Content and Bootcamps Nathan presses Pete for exact pricing numbers for sponsored articles. When Pete resists by citing competitive secrecy, Nathan pushes back firmly and demands at least a reasonable range.5:38–8:30 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 Scaling Full-Time, Outreach Tactics, and Mentorship Nathan reads out Pete's exact Twitter metrics and revenue milestones to verify them. Pete discusses his growth strategy, inspirations, and learning from mentors like Pat Walls.8:30–11:26 · Nathan pushing back 4/10 Hacker News Launch and Conversion Optimization Strategies Nathan drills into the technical conversion funnel from Pete's Hacker News traffic spike. Pete uses a museum analogy to explain exit pop-ups but admits he doesn't have exact conversion percentages handy.11:29–15:09 · Nathan pushing back 6/10 Sponsor Break: HostGator Website Hosting Solution After an ad break, Nathan challenges Pete on the unrepeatability of Hacker News virality. Pete acknowledges the role of luck on Hacker News compared to steady community building on Product Hunt.15:10–17:49 · Nathan pushing back 4/10 Past Product Launches and the Nomad Flights Pivot Nathan reads through Pete's portfolio of past product launches on Product Hunt. Pete educates Nathan on why his Nomad Flights project failed compared to Scott's Cheap Flights due to market niche sizing.

speaking balance: gold is Nathan, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)

0:00 · Nathan 66.5% · guest 33.5%0:00 · Nathan 66.5% · guest 33.5%3:00 · Nathan 31.8% · guest 68.2%3:00 · Nathan 31.8% · guest 68.2%6:00 · Nathan 17% · guest 83%6:00 · Nathan 17% · guest 83%9:00 · Nathan 29.9% · guest 70.1%9:00 · Nathan 29.9% · guest 70.1%12:00 · Nathan 39.9% · guest 60.1%12:00 · Nathan 39.9% · guest 60.1%15:00 · Nathan 22.2% · guest 77.8%15:00 · Nathan 22.2% · guest 77.8%18:00 · Nathan 56.8% · guest 43.2%18:00 · Nathan 56.8% · guest 43.2%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 4:29 Guest hesitates to reveal sponsorship revenue

Pete directly declines Nathan's request for precise sponsorship numbers, arguing that disclosing pricing would give an advantage to his competitors.

 Hardest push from Nathan ▶ 4:43 Host insists on getting revenue figures

Nathan refuses to accept Pete's deflection regarding pricing, insisting that providing a broad range is necessary for the audience to understand the business.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 16:40 Pete breaks down volume dynamics in flight alert newsletters

Pete clearly educates Nathan on unit economics in the travel newsletter space, explaining why broad plays like Scott's Cheap Flights succeed while hyper-niche digital nomad variants struggle.

 Nathan holds their own ▶ 13:32 Nathan calls out unrepeatable traffic spikes

Nathan demonstrates domain expertise by pulling up Pete's historical posting data and pointing out that his viral Hacker News success was a one-off rather than a predictable channel.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicNathan as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementNathan pushing backWhy
Episode Preview: Annual Revenue and Financial Goals 4112 Nathan introduces Pete after a promotional intro snippet. He quickly digs into the business mechanics and clarifies Pete's Scottish accent when he mentions bootcamps.
Monetization Model: Sponsored Content and Bootcamps 6247 Nathan presses Pete for exact pricing numbers for sponsored articles. When Pete resists by citing competitive secrecy, Nathan pushes back firmly and demands at least a reasonable range.
Scaling Full-Time, Outreach Tactics, and Mentorship 5212 Nathan reads out Pete's exact Twitter metrics and revenue milestones to verify them. Pete discusses his growth strategy, inspirations, and learning from mentors like Pat Walls.
Hacker News Launch and Conversion Optimization Strategies 5324 Nathan drills into the technical conversion funnel from Pete's Hacker News traffic spike. Pete uses a museum analogy to explain exit pop-ups but admits he doesn't have exact conversion percentages handy.
Sponsor Break: HostGator Website Hosting Solution 6326 After an ad break, Nathan challenges Pete on the unrepeatability of Hacker News virality. Pete acknowledges the role of luck on Hacker News compared to steady community building on Product Hunt.
Past Product Launches and the Nomad Flights Pivot 6534 Nathan reads through Pete's portfolio of past product launches on Product Hunt. Pete educates Nathan on why his Nomad Flights project failed compared to Scott's Cheap Flights due to market niche sizing.

Statements from this episode (10)

Disclosure
McLeod: NoCSDegree charges in the hundreds of dollars per sponsored article
“In the, like, hundreds of dollars range.”
Pete McLeod Aug 31, 2020 ▶ 4:52
Disclosure
McLeod: NoCSDegree generates near $2,000 monthly from sponsorships
“Near two grand.”
Pete McLeod Aug 31, 2020 ▶ 5:36
Assertion Supported
McLeod: Starter Story Founder Pat Walls Reached $10k a Month
“One of my, like, main mentors, Pat Walls, who runs Starter Story, he just hit 10,000 a month”
Pete McLeod Aug 31, 2020 ▶ 7:21
Assertion Not checkable as stated
McLeod: Hitting #1 on Hacker News for a day drove 30,000 visits
“I launched on Hacker News. And I didn't have any profile there or any kind of, you know, yeah, any like big kind of following or backing there, but everyone really loved it, and it stayed top of Hacker News for like a day, so that got like, I can't remember ho…”
Pete McLeod Aug 31, 2020 ▶ 8:49
Insight
McLeod: Exit-intent pop-ups outperform immediate pop-ups by timing asks
“I think a lot of people intuitively now are a little bit, you know, against pop-ups, and I'd say that's true if they're, like, straight away, but an analogy I heard from Harry Dry, who does a great marketing website, is kind of like, If you go into a museum an…”
Pete McLeod Aug 31, 2020 ▶ 10:10
Insight
McLeod: Newsletter pop-ups should frame CTAs around value, not 'subscribe'
“Some other tools that you can use on a pop-up to help would be things like talking about values. So instead of saying subscribe, you can say, you know, get help with coding. So make a value proposition rather than, you know, subscribe is kind of like a bland k…”
Pete McLeod Aug 31, 2020 ▶ 11:00
Assertion Not checkable as stated
McLeod: Launching a niche job board generated 1,000 subscribers in one week
“When I launched my job board a few months later, that I had everything prepared for that, and I got a thousand subscribers in a week.”
Pete McLeod Aug 31, 2020 ▶ 13:07
Insight
McLeod: Product Hunt builds steady followings; Hacker News is an all-or-nothing lottery
“I think Product Hunt is probably Better for kind of, like, building up the following, whereas Hacker News can be more of a kind of, yeah, you can plug away at lots of things, and it can either go sky high or nothing, so it's more of a black or white situation,…”
Pete McLeod Aug 31, 2020 ▶ 14:52
Disclosure
Pete McLeod: Nomad Flights had Product Hunt traction but no viable model
“There's lots of things that do great on product hunt, and it was like the perfect kind of niche for that audience, but I couldn't really find a business model that worked with that.”
Pete McLeod Aug 31, 2020 ▶ 16:46
Insight
McLeod: Flight deal newsletters like Scott's Cheap Flights require mass consumer scale
“With Scott's Cheap Flights, which is obviously the original numero uno, I think that works because he's got, like, a vast number of subscribers, and you can, there's so many, so I think It's, he can only, if he, if you have say like a million subscribers, you …”
Pete McLeod Aug 31, 2020 ▶ 17:09
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