Building a SaaS Product: Key Technologies and Tools

Introduction

• Discussion of building a personal Software as a Service (SaaS) product.
• Focus on the technologies used, costs, and the overall experience.
• Goal: Provide a realistic idea of the tech stack needed to build a SaaS.

Core Functionality

• The app is designed to collect and showcase user reviews (text/video) to increase trust and credibility.
• Reviews are optimized for fast delivery on websites.

Tech Stack Overview

• Nicknamed "Gazillion Dollar Unicorn Stack" or "Josh Stack".

Framework

Next.js 14

• Core framework for development.
• Used for developing high-quality web applications.
• Chosen for its comprehensive features and ease of use.

Deployment

Vercel

• Used for deploying the application.
• Chosen for convenience over AWS Amplify due to ease of use.
• Provides built-in analytics.
• Cost: $20/month.

Image and Video Processing

AWS

• AWS S3 for storage of user-uploaded media.
• AWS Lambda for processing media (compresses images, optimizes video for streaming).
• Resource-intensive, requires significant memory.
• Media delivered via Cloudflare CDN (images) and Amazon CloudFront (videos).

FFMpeg

• Tool for media format conversion and optimization.

Webhooks

Upstash Qash

• Ensures reliable delivery of webhooks, critical for processing payments.

Payments

Lemon Squeezy

• Used for managing payments and tax compliance.
• Offers convenience in handling taxes, especially in regions like Germany.

User Authentication

Clerk

• Chosen for user authentication due to its features and ease of integration.
• Provides analytics for user data.

Testing

• Jest: For unit testing individual functions.
• Cypress: For end-to-end testing to ensure functionality works as expected.

Database

PostgreSQL on Neon

• Initial choice due to a free tier.
• Potential alternative: Cloudflare D1 SQL database.

UI Development

• Custom UI built on top of Shaty and UI, using components from a Figma template.

Conclusion

• The video aims to assist in selecting the right tech stack for a project.
• Encourages exploring different technologies for personal projects.