Distribution, Not Content, Is Your Real Product: Why First-Time Creators Hit a Wall

This story reveals a critical blind spot for indie developers launching digital products: building great products isn't enough—distribution channels matter more. The author discovered that platform restrictions for new accounts (Reddit's karma wall, LinkedIn's API blocks) aren't bugs but features designed to protect existing power users. For anyone selling to zero audience, this highlights why audience-building or paid distribution must come before—or alongside—product development.