> It is too easy to: splash page, Wordpress, "rails new saas" for a product and then try to sell via SEO / outbound
Not even that, these days people simply start newsletters...
Still, I wouldn't write off the payment model. People seem to prefer subscriptions to one-time payments. If they didn't, Netflix, Spotify, etc., wouldn't enjoy the popularity they do.
That's a very niche and small cherry-pick that you did.
I practically know only 2 people willing to pay monthly sub for note taking or various such trivia. 99% of everyone I know is very conservative about monthly subs. Sure Netflix / Spotify / YouTube Premium / etc. are worth it but most apps out there really are not.
Plus there's such a thing as a "sub fatigue" these days. People feel everybody is after a chunk of their wallet each month and are starting to resist. I don't even mean myself or other tech-savvy people; I really mean mothers and grandmothers who have no clue but still don't want to pay up all the time.
Not even that, these days people simply start newsletters...
Still, I wouldn't write off the payment model. People seem to prefer subscriptions to one-time payments. If they didn't, Netflix, Spotify, etc., wouldn't enjoy the popularity they do.