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Ask HN: I use my own product, but others don't. Why?

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Re: Ask HN: I use my own product, but others don't. Why?

#21

Post by Guest192038 »

faisalkhalid80 wrote: post #20
Guest192038 wrote: post #17

The site looks like a clone of Google Maps, but you're limited to London, you show far fewer results in any given location, and the search doesn't work nearly as well. For example, I can visit Google Maps, type in 'Italian food in Mayfair' and I instantly have results. On your site I type the same thing, and I get nothing. Instead, your site gives search suggestions for Indian and British food for my Italian search,…

Thanks for the feedback. The main reason to use us is.. 1. its easier to use. you mention google maps - try using it on mobile, when you need to decide in 2 seconds. doesn't work, too much noise. you see 8 results because these are top ranked, we don't show you everything. if thats what you want (everything) then its google. 2. aggregation. unlike google, which you mentioned, we show you content from numerous differe…

You might want to consider trying something more like Airbnb. Play around with the Airbnb search, and imagine the same for restaurants.

https://www.airbnb.com/s/Rome--Italy

Some Airbnb improvements that could be applied to your site.

1. Give more room to the results, instead of having the map cover 80% of the screen.

2. Search bar for location, then checkboxes for cuisines.

3. Slider for price.

4. Update the results when you move or zoom in or out on the map.

Re: Ask HN: I use my own product, but others don't. Why?

#22

Post by zhte415 »

Why not take on the criticism, polish some points and make it clear about focused results, etc, (different sized icons for different Zagat scores, etc) and pitch it to a London-based newspaper rather than take over the world.

You could have a lot of advantages being London based, given the concentration of people and wealth, solving a specific case rather than a general case.

Re: Ask HN: I use my own product, but others don't. Why?

#23

Post by faisalkhalid80 »

zhte415 wrote: post #22

Why not take on the criticism, polish some points and make it clear about focused results, etc, (different sized icons for different Zagat scores, etc) and pitch it to a London-based newspaper rather than take over the world. You could have a lot of advantages being London based, given the concentration of people and wealth, solving a specific case rather than a general case.

absolutely, once the comments are over in a day or two, i will aggregate all the feedback, sit with the team and prioritise which ones to do..

Re: Ask HN: I use my own product, but others don't. Why?

#24

Post by LarryMade2 »

Since it is focusing on food, you might want to take out some of the guesswork:

i.e. some more direct browse options would be nice... such as

- I'm hungry - What's Open Near me now (this could be a filter)

- Top rated

- Browse by type

Maybe have a login accounts where people can check off/rate places they've visited (for those adventurers that want to eat at every fish and chip shop in London.)

---

Marketing - Have you done any flyers? Visitors to London may not be aware of the service... Just as something as simple as:

Hungry?

[QR code]

www.restaurantmapper.com

Maybe add in a strip of various foodie pics to entice.

---

Here's my ongoing side project work on a mobile community resource: http://www.doplaces.com might give you inspiration...

Also it takes time to get traction via word of mouth certainly more than days. Keep up the good work.

Re: Ask HN: I use my own product, but others don't. Why?

#27

Post by mbrock »

I don't feel attracted to sites like these, or even FourSquare, because they're so impersonal. It's like the yellow pages on a map widget.

You gather reviews and Michelin stars and stuff, which is probably good for you and some target audience, but I don't care about that stuff.

Michelin guide judges seem to belong to some other world of foodie snobs who order stuff I would never order and don't care about the aspects I do care about, like price, ease of access, humility, coziness, friend recommendations, etc.

When I'm out and about, or when I'm planning an evening, I'm not interested in seeing all possible options. In fact that just makes me more confused because now I have to look at 50 different fact boxes and try to decide on dinner based on a bunch of facts and stylized pictures.

The only similar site I've used and actually liked is SpottedByLocals, which is more labour intensive because it is made by locals and expats who go to places, take their own pictures, write their own reviews (with a bit of personality), etc.

So on SpottedByLocals I get an interesting "curated" subset of restaurants that I know have been visited by what I think of as "actual humans" and who provide actual on-the-ground information instead of generic overviews.

Thus, for me, the site would be way more interesting if it only had 12 restaurants that you have been to, with one or two Instagram pictures each, a little tip ("I loved the hummus"), and maybe something about what's in the neighborhood.

Metaphorically it's like if I were to ask a friend "hey, where should I have dinner in London?" I don't want 200 restaurants, I really only want one, as long as it's decent.

One random idea would be to Tinderify the user interface. Instead of making me hover over dozens of map pins, it would just ask "does this look good? y/n."

Or maybe a kind of 20 questions approach, so I would say: "Nah, too fancy. Nah, too meat-based. Nah, too far from Soho. Ah, yes, that place looks good."

Re: Ask HN: I use my own product, but others don't. Why?

#28

Post by faisalkhalid80 »

mbrock wrote: post #27

I don't feel attracted to sites like these, or even FourSquare, because they're so impersonal. It's like the yellow pages on a map widget. You gather reviews and Michelin stars and stuff, which is probably good for you and some target audience, but I don't care about that stuff. Michelin guide judges seem to belong to some other world of foodie snobs who order stuff I would never order and don't care about the aspect…

this is excellent feedback, and is a great articulation of what i have been feeling, but perhaps lacking confidence to say to myself. thank you, you have probably saved me a month of useless development through this.
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