Why I built Mailflo: a tool for small business owners like me

Customer relationship management and support systems are the backbone of any business. It doesn't matter if you're running a million-dollar company or just starting out as a solo developer, you need some way to communicate with your customers. There are tons of software tools out there trying to solve this problem, and investors are still pouring money into finding new ways to crack the market.

But as a small business owner, choosing the right tool is always a challenge.

The Multi-Project Problem

I believe most small business owners, including me, have more than one project to juggle. Some projects start making money from day one, while others don't earn a cent for months or even years. I'm particularly interested in those projects that start rough and need time to grow. Unfortunately, these are often the projects that die because of poor tools and high upfront costs.

After trying countless tools for customer support and relationship management, I ended up using whatever had free plans. Don't get me wrong, I don't mind paying for the right tools. But finding one single tool that can handle all my customer inquiries and social interactions is really frustrating. The tools that promise to do everything usually end up being clunky and slow.

I spent weeks jumping between Gmail, Intercom, Zendesk, and a dozen other platforms. Each one had something I liked, but none of them understood that I needed to keep my SaaS project support separate from my mobile app feedback, while still managing everything from one dashboard. The mental overhead of remembering which tool handles what becomes exhausting.

What's Missing

I always wondered why it's so hard to manage multiple products in one account with clear separation. Think about it: you want a tool that handles all customer support queries, emails, and social accounts for all your products, but with clear boundaries between them.

Every software I tried lacked this clear division. When you're the developer, manager, and customer support person all rolled into one, having multiple separate accounts for different products becomes a nightmare.

Enter Mailflo

That's why I'm building Mailflo. This project addresses exactly these problems I've been facing.

Mailflo is still in its early stages, and honestly, the requirements might change a lot as I learn more. But the main goal is clear: build a clean, simple tool that helps small businesses and entrepreneurs manage their customer communication without the bloat.

The core idea is simple: multiple email accounts for different products, all managed from one clean interface. Think support@productA.com and hello@productB.com, both flowing into separate, organized inboxes that you can switch between instantly. No confusion, no mixed conversations, no accidentally replying to the wrong customer about the wrong product.

I'm not entirely sure where Mailflo fits in the market yet. But I believe there's a market for everything if it's built right and solves a real problem that people have.

Built by small business owners, for small business owners

The difference with Mailflo is that I'm building it from the perspective of someone who actually lives these problems every day. I understand what it's like to have three different projects, each at different stages, all needing proper customer support.

I understand the pain of switching between different tools, losing context, and feeling like you're drowning in scattered conversations.

Most importantly, I understand that not every project can afford enterprise-level pricing from day one.

Mailflo is designed to grow with you. Start simple when your project is just getting off the ground, then scale up as you grow. No complex setups, no confusing interfaces, just clean email management that makes sense.

What's Next

I'm still working on Mailflo, figuring out exactly what features matter most and how to build them right. The beauty of building this as a small business owner is that I can focus on what actually matters instead of chasing enterprise features that small teams never use.

Right now I'm focusing on getting the core email management perfect. Clean interfaces, fast switching between products, reliable delivery, and simple team collaboration. Once that foundation is solid, I'll add more features based on what users actually ask for.

If you're a small business owner or entrepreneur dealing with similar challenges, I'd love to hear about your experiences. What tools are you using? What's frustrating you the most about your current setup?

The goal isn't to build another bloated customer support platform. It's to build something that actually works for people like us who are building multiple products, often on tight budgets, and need tools that understand our reality.

Mailflo is currently in development. If you're interested in following our progress or sharing your email management challenges, check out our features to see how we're approaching these problems.