YC
Building Product, Talking to Users, and Growing with Adora Cheung (How to Start a Startup 2014: 4)
@ Y Combinator
03/20/17
Takeaways
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
I learned a lot about what not to do if I were to start another startup after Homejoy, and much of this comes from my past failures.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
When starting a startup, it's crucial to have dedicated time to immerse yourself in the idea and develop solutions to the problems you're trying to solve.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
It's better to have one or two full days each week dedicated to working on your startup rather than just a couple of hours spread throughout the week.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
Many novice entrepreneurs think they should keep their great ideas secret and just build without feedback, but this often leads to launching a product that no one wants.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
You should be able to clearly articulate the problem your idea is solving in one sentence and verify that it's a problem others also face by talking to potential users.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
Before building a product, you should storyboard the ideal user experience, considering how customers will discover, interact with, and evaluate your product.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
When building a product, focus on creating a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) that effectively addresses the core problem you're solving, rather than just adding features.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
Your first users should be people you know, like friends and family, to gather initial feedback and refine your product before reaching a broader audience.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
To gather valuable user feedback, engage in conversations with users rather than conducting formal interviews, as this fosters a more honest and open dialogue.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
Tracking customer retention is essential; it helps you understand how many users continue to engage with your product over time, which is a key indicator of success.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
Be aware that feedback from friends and family may be biased; they might not provide honest critiques compared to random users who have paid for your product.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
Before launching your product, focus on building quickly and optimizing for the next stage of growth, rather than trying to cater to a large user base right away.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
Manually doing processes yourself in the early stages of building a marketplace is crucial to understanding what needs to be built, rather than automating everything too soon. When we started onboarding cleaning professionals, we asked them numerous questions over the phone and in person, followed by a test clean. This process led to an acceptance rate of only three to five percent, meaning many candidates never made it onto the platform.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
Over time, we learned that certain questions we asked were indicators of whether a cleaning professional would be a good or bad performer on the platform. This insight came from data collection and analyzing responses.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
Temporary brokenness is much better than permanent paralysis. During the early stages, perfection is irrelevant; focus on building for your core users and worry about edge cases later as your user base grows.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
Beware of the Frankenstein approach: while it's important to listen to user feedback, don't rush to build every feature they suggest. Instead, understand the underlying problem they want solved before adding new features.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
When you're ready to ship your product, don't fall into the trap of perfecting it endlessly. Launch it to gather user feedback, as imitation is often cheaper than innovation.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
In the early stages, focus on one growth channel at a time. Execute on it for a week, and if it works, continue until it caps out. If it doesn't, move on to another channel.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
Always iterate on successful growth strategies. The channels you use will change over time, so stay adaptable and optimize your approach continuously.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
When a growth channel fails, don't hesitate to move on. However, revisit those channels later as your business evolves; you might find new opportunities.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
Creativity is key in performance marketing. If growth were easy, everyone would be doing it. Find unique strategies that set you apart from competitors.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
There are three types of growth: sticky growth, which focuses on retaining existing users; viral growth, which relies on users referring others; and paid growth, which involves spending money to acquire users.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
Sticky growth is about ensuring your existing users keep coming back and spending more. Delivering a good experience is crucial for retention.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
Cohort analysis helps measure user retention over time. By tracking how many users return after their first use, you can assess the effectiveness of your product and identify areas for improvement.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
Viral growth requires not just a good product but also an excellent user experience that encourages users to share it with others. A strong referral program is essential for facilitating this growth.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
The mechanics of a referral program should be clear and enticing. For example, offering rewards for both the referrer and the new user can incentivize sharing.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
Paid growth involves spending money to acquire users. It's important to ensure that the lifetime value of a customer exceeds the cost of acquiring them, or else the growth strategy may not be sustainable.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
Sustainability in growth means not overspending beyond your means. If your customer acquisition costs exceed the lifetime value of your customers, you risk running into financial trouble.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
When considering a pivot, assess whether you can still grow. If you find that your user base isn't retaining or the business model isn't working, it may be time to change direction.
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Adora Cheung
03/20/17
@ Y Combinator
To successfully switch users from existing solutions, identify moments when your product offers significant advantages over competitors. Highlight these differentiators to encourage users to make the switch.