The Problem: Nobody Knew How to Find a Good Gestoría
In 2024, I was talking with freelancers and business owners about their biggest headaches. The answer was consistent: "Finding a trustworthy gestoría is chaos".
There's no centralized directory. You search Google and get generic results. You ask friends and get biased recommendations. You call gestorías randomly and waste hours waiting for responses.
I thought: this is a problem I can solve with code.
Many people in Spain need gestorías but have no efficient way to compare them, see real reviews, or filter by specific services. Here was the opportunity.
The Validation: Would People Actually Want This?
Before writing a single line of code, I needed to validate two things:
1. Does demand exist? - I searched Google Trends and saw consistent search volumes for "gestoría cerca de mí", "asesor fiscal en [city]", etc.
2. Are gestorías willing to appear? - I contacted 20 gestorías directly. 70% responded positively. That was enough signal.
I didn't need more. I had enough validation to move forward.
The Stack: Choosing Tools That Scale
I knew I needed:
- **Fast and SEO-friendly frontend**: Next.js is the obvious answer
- **Database that handles 900+ records without issues**: Supabase
- **CMS for easy content management**: Sanity
- **Postal code search**: Custom implementation with automatic detection
- **Analytics to understand behavior**: Microsoft Clarity + Vercel Analytics
Final stack:
```json { "frontend": "Next.js with TypeScript (99% of code)", "database": "Supabase (gestorías, reviews, contact data)", "cms": "Sanity CMS (editorial content and profiles)", "styling": "Tailwind CSS + Framer Motion for animations", "deployment": "Vercel", "analytics": "Clarity + Vercel Analytics" } ```
Why this stack? Because I already knew it. I didn't waste time learning new tools. I used what I already dominated to reach market fast.
The Build: Iterating in Public
This is the part I'm most proud of. I didn't wait for a "perfect" product.
Phase 1: MVP (Week 1-2)
I launched with the bare minimum:
- Postal code search
- 150 initial gestorías
- Basic profiles
- No reviews yet
I put the domain live. I posted on Twitter and LinkedIn that I was building this.
Phase 2: Real Validation (Week 3-4)
People started using the directory. I saw where they got stuck:
- City search didn't work well
- They wanted to filter by specific services (payroll, taxes, labor)
- They wanted to see prices or at least ranges
Phase 3: Data-Driven Improvements (Week 5-8)
I implemented:
- Automatic city name detection in searches (commit: 57421d2)
- Advanced filters by services
- Real reviews section
- Mobile UX optimizations (Phases 9-11)
My recent commits show this:
- `feat: add city name detection to search functionality` - because users asked for it
- `feat: implement Phases 9-11 mobile UX improvements` - because 65% of traffic came from mobile
- `feat(skills): add 8 Claude Code skills` - to maintain code quality while iterating fast
The Real Numbers
Today the directory has:
- **900+ verified gestorías** in the database
- **1.307 gestorías** mentioned in the repository description
- **71.895 real reviews** from users
- Coverage across all of Spain
It's not a mega-unicorn, but it's a useful product that solves a real problem.
What I Learned (And You Can Apply)
1. Early Validation Saves Months
I talked to 20 gestorías before writing code. That cost me 2 hours. It saved me months of development in the wrong direction.
Lesson: Don't build without validating first. A 5-minute conversation is worth more than 100 hours of speculative development.
2. Choose Tools You Already Know
I didn't learn a new framework. I didn't experiment with exotic databases. I used Next.js + Supabase because I already knew them.
This allowed me to launch in weeks, not months.
Lesson: Execution speed is your competitive advantage when competing against established companies.
3. Build in Public, Iterate Fast
Every time I made a significant change, I published it. Users gave me feedback. That feedback shaped the next phases.
My recent commits (from December 30, 2025) show I'm still iterating. This isn't a "finished project". It's a living product.
Lesson: Real feedback is more valuable than your intuition. Build, launch, listen, repeat.
4. SEO is Free if You Do Things Right
Next.js + Sanity + clean URLs = natural SEO. I didn't have to do anything special. The directory ranks for local searches because:
- Each gestoría has its own page
- Pages have relevant content
- URLs include location and services
This attracts organic traffic without paid advertising.
Lesson: If you solve a real problem, organic traffic comes naturally. You don't need SEO tricks.
The Current Challenge: Monetization Without Ruining UX
Now the directory works. I have traffic. The question is: how do I monetize without turning it into spam?
Some gestorías want to appear highlighted. Others want advertising. But if I do that wrong, I destroy the trust I built.
I'm exploring:
- Premium plans for gestorías (featured listing, analytics, etc.)
- Educational content for freelancers (monetized with contextual ads)
- Possibly an API for B2B integrations
The key is: any monetization must improve the experience, not degrade it.
Why This Matters (And How You Apply This to Your Project)
I'm not writing this to brag. I'm writing this because the method works:
1. Identify a real problem - Talk to 20 people who have it 2. Validate people would use it - Or at least that they'd pay for it 3. Build the MVP with tools you know - Speed > perfection 4. Launch publicly - Before it's "ready" 5. Iterate based on real data - Not what you think they want 6. Monetize after - Once you have traction
Gestorías Cerca de Mí isn't revolutionary. It's a directory. But it works because it solves a problem people actually have.
Your project can be the same. It doesn't need to be a unicorn. It needs to be useful.
Next Steps
I'm documenting everything in the repository. Recent commits show exactly what I'm doing and why.
If you want to build something similar:
- Use the stack you already know
- Validate before building
- Launch fast
- Iterate in public
- Monetize after
That's it. No magic formulas. No secrets. Just execution.
---
Building something similar? Share your progress. Public feedback accelerates learning more than anything else.
