I just started a small business and have no money for ads. How do I get my first 10 customers?

Write down ten specific people who have the problem you solve, starting with the people you already know, and message each one yourself this week with one clear offer and a request for an introduction. Ads are not needed for this: the first ten customers come from one-to-one conversations, a free Google Business Profile if you serve a local area, and the businesses next door that already meet your customers.

Wanna is a small helper for the writing and list-making part of this plan. It does not find or contact people for you, and nothing goes out without your OK.

Written by Wanna AI. Checked on 25 Oct 2026. Wanna is our product, so read its place below with that in mind.

The order to do it in

1. List everyone you know who fits, then pick ten. Start with people who have the problem you solve right now, not people who might one day. Write the ten names down. Message each one directly: what you now offer, who it is for, and one specific ask. A direct message beats a post on your page, because it asks one person for one answer.
2. Ask every person for an introduction, even when they say no. "Not for me, but do you know one person who has this problem?" turns a no into a second name. Add each new name to the list.
3. If you serve a local area, fill in a free Google Business Profile. Add what you do, the area you serve, your hours, your phone number and a few real photos. After each happy customer, send a direct link and ask for a review.
4. Find the businesses on your street that meet your customers before you do. A bakery meets people who plan parties; a property manager meets people who need a cleaner. Offer to send your customers their way and ask for the same.
5. Give the first two or three customers a founding offer in exchange for an honest review. Say plainly that it is a founding offer and what you ask in return.

Do steps 1 and 2 first. They cost only your time, and they tell you quickly whether the offer makes sense to a real person.

What one message looks like

Keep it short and name the person: who you are, what you now offer, who it is for, one ask. For example: "Hi Sam, I have started doing [what you do] for [who it is for]. Would you try it this week at [your founding offer]? And if it is not for you, is there one person you know who has this problem?" Send each message yourself, one at a time. Do not send the same text to a group.

What the answers agree on

On 25 Oct 2026 we put this question to four AI answer engines: iAsk, Andi, Gemini on the web, and a web search. We did not test the advice ourselves. It is common advice, not proof.

• All four lead with the same first move: contact people you already know, one by one. Two of the four, iAsk and Gemini, also say to ask for introductions.
• Two of the four, Gemini and the web search, add a free or founding offer in exchange for a review or testimonial.
• Two, iAsk and the web search, name the Google Business Profile for businesses that serve a local area.
• None of the four recommended a tool or an AI product. They name channels such as LinkedIn, WhatsApp, Nextdoor and Discord.

The same first move is the lesson on our first buyers page, taken from Paul Graham's essay "Do Things that Don't Scale" (Jul 2013): "You can't wait for users to come to you." The step it gives is to pick ten specific people who have the problem and personally message each of them this week.

Where Wanna fits

If you have no list yet, or not much of an idea, open start here. Its "I have an idea" door asks five short questions: who it is for, what problem they have, what you would sell, where, and how you want to grow. It then returns a one-page brief, a first page, who already does it, and your first 10 people with where they gather and what to say. The page says it is free with no sign-up. We read that on the page on 25 Oct 2026 and did not run it for this guide.

If you already have a website, paste the link. Wanna reads it, plans your first week and drafts posts and messages for you to read and approve. Sending is off for every new company, and nothing is posted without your OK.

Your part stays the same: you pick the ten people, you send the messages, you ask for the introductions. Wanna only saves you the first draft.

For a version of this plan for a local service business, see more customers for a local service business without a marketer. For a cafe with quiet weekdays, see the cafe guide.

What we do not know yet

Wanna has no customer who reached ten customers with this plan, and we have no count to show you. This page does not promise that you will get ten customers, or how fast. Which of the five steps works first depends on what you sell and where.

What Wanna does not replace

• It does not find, contact or sign up customers for you.
• It does not walk next door, make a phone call or meet another business owner. You do.
• It does not claim or manage your Google Business Profile, or ask your customers for reviews.
• It does not make your offer good. If ten people say no, change the offer before you send more messages.
• It does not post, send or spend anything without your OK.

FAQ

I just started a small business and have no money for ads. How do I get my first 10 customers? Write down ten specific people who have the problem you solve, starting with people you know, and message each one yourself this week with one clear offer and a request for an introduction. Then use a free Google Business Profile if you serve a local area, and the businesses next door that already meet your customers.

How do I get my first customers for free? Message people you know one by one, ask each for an introduction, and fill in a free Google Business Profile. Give the first two or three customers a founding offer in exchange for an honest review.

Should I ask friends and family to be my first customers? Ask the ones who really have the problem you solve, and ask them for introductions too. Someone who does not have the problem is a poor test of your offer, even if they are kind.

Can AI get me my first customers? Wanna can draft the messages and posts for your OK, and its idea brief lists your first 10 people. It does not find or contact customers, and we do not claim a number of customers.

Is there a free way to get started with Wanna? The /start-here page says it is free with no sign-up. Plans and prices are on the pricing page.