Spent first 2 months chasing tech startups and SaaS companies.
Zero closed deals.
Then accidentally landed healthcare client. Realized I'd been targeting wrong industry entirely.
THE SHIFT:
Tech startups: Already automated everything, hard to find pain points, price sensitive
Healthcare providers: Drowning in forms, desperate for help, will pay premium
HEALTHCARE DOCUMENT GOLDMINE:
- Patient intake forms (every practice)
- Insurance verification forms (every provider)
- Medical records requests (constant)
- Prescription forms (daily)
- Billing superbills (weekly batches)
- Referral paperwork (ongoing)
Every single one processable with same workflow pattern.
MY FIRST HEALTHCARE MONTH:
Week 1: Dental practice, intake forms, $1,400
Week 2: Chiropractor, insurance verifications, $1,200
Week 3: Physical therapy, billing superbills, $1,600
Week 4: Medical clinic, referral processing, $2,200
Total: $6,400 in setup fees + $610/month recurring
ALL SAME BASIC WORKFLOW:
Email/fax receives form β PDF Vector handles extraction (including handwriting) β JSON schema defines fields β Posts to practice management system β Notification sent
WHY HEALTHCARE WORKS:
High document volume (100-500 forms monthly typical)
Staff time expensive ($20-35/hour)
Compliance critical (errors costly)
Technology adoption low (ripe for automation)
Referral network strong (practices talk to each other)
OTHER HIGH-VALUE INDUSTRIES:
Legal: Contracts, case files, discovery documents
Accounting: Invoices, receipts, tax documents
Real estate: Listings, applications, leases
Logistics: BOLs, manifests, customs forms
THE APPROACH:
Find industry Facebook groups
Search "hiring data entry" or "need help with forms"
Offer free 15-min demo with their actual documents
Show it working live
Close same call
THE LESSON:
Industry selection matters more than automation skill. Healthcare providers are 3-4 years behind tech companies in automation adoption.
Perfect timing. Perfect pain. Perfect pricing power.
What industry has the most document processing pain in your network?