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Getting Users Is Hard

news.ycombinator.com

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Re: Getting Users Is Hard

#71

Post by ethanwillis »

gkoberger wrote: post #68
liquidise wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not sure i've ever read an HN comment i find as distasteful as this. The OP is building an app to help people meet, yet by their own admission have managed to attract one user. They asked a question about a common issue engineers face: onboarding and marketing. Your comment ignores nearly every shred of this substance. Instead you accuse them of "getting [users] killed"? Patently absurd. To cut them down at the k…

Hey Ben! Thanks for the feedback. If it wasn't in the middle of a pandemic where people are dying, you'd be right – negativity on HN toward makers sucks, and is way too prevalent. You can check my comment history, I spend a LOT of time helping people who are building things. I love makers, and like yourself, I'm a founder. I'm pretty sure this is the first time on HN/Twitter/etc I've been negative about someone putti…

I think that it would be more helpful instead of shaming Ryan into not building a meetup app at all to instead offer the suggestion I'm about to.

Why not spin the meetup app to be a way to connect people virtually to reduce isolation? I know everything is bigger in Texas, but there is a huge target audience (maybe even bigger:)) outside of Texas.

Just look at netflix party as an example.

Re: Getting Users Is Hard

#72

Post by Axsuul »

You are better off building an integration on top of a platform that your users are already on (e.g a Telegram bot). Also, I wouldn't call it a grind yet–you only just started contacting them yesterday :)

Re: Getting Users Is Hard

#73

Post by seebetter »

gkoberger wrote: post #53

Wait. You're in Texas and are trying to get people to use an app that encourages them to meet in person, often in groups? During a pandemic where people are dying? I always want to be supportive of anyone building anything, but seriously... stop. Put it on ice for 6-12 months. This app sucks. Technology should be used to help people. Spend your time doing something good during the pandemic, not getting them killed.

Not only that, he's encouraging people to travel by automobile and to drink alcohol. These are two driving forces of the people are dying phenomenon.

I'm all for safe interaction, wearing a mask, social distancing and limiting social engagements but I'm more concerned with subtle and aggressive forms of authoritarian thought becoming mainstream.

Re: Getting Users Is Hard

#74

Post by rblatz »

ryansam wrote: post #50
root_axis wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You may be on to something with respect to culture, but that is where the hard work will be: user experience design and marketing that codifies the culture into a brand that can distinguish your product among the sea of commodity social networking software.

Well my signup screen (first thing the user sees) has a background photo of a night life party to set the tone. Maybe I should make it darkmode themed to set the tone more but I don't want to discourage people using this to meet up for coffee. I strongly agree though, lots of hard work will be needed to be put in culture.

Why are you forcing singup? Skip that, make it optional. When people are invited to an event send them a unique link tied to their email/phone number/WhatsApp or whatever. Create a long lived cookie that identifies them as that user. If someone really wants to create an account with a login and password let them, but don’t make them create yet another account to manage.

Edit: Also as you build the graph out, consider making all events private by default, and providing a what’s up feature that would let your friends/clique/circle/squad or whatever you are calling it know you are looking for plans tonight. Then let them opt you into visibility for their evening plans.

Re: Getting Users Is Hard

#75

Post by hn_check »

liquidise wrote: post #64
gkoberger wrote: post #53

Wait. You're in Texas and are trying to get people to use an app that encourages them to meet in person, often in groups? During a pandemic where people are dying? I always want to be supportive of anyone building anything, but seriously... stop. Put it on ice for 6-12 months. This app sucks. Technology should be used to help people. Spend your time doing something good during the pandemic, not getting them killed.

I'm not sure i've ever read an HN comment i find as distasteful as this. The OP is building an app to help people meet, yet by their own admission have managed to attract one user. They asked a question about a common issue engineers face: onboarding and marketing. Your comment ignores nearly every shred of this substance. Instead you accuse them of "getting [users] killed"? Patently absurd. To cut them down at the k…

Their comment addresses the fundamental substance of the submission. It's as if someone started their sunscreen door to door business in January: The fundamental timing is broken.

Re: Getting Users Is Hard

#76

Post by [deleted] »

gkoberger wrote: post #53

Wait. You're in Texas and are trying to get people to use an app that encourages them to meet in person, often in groups? During a pandemic where people are dying? I always want to be supportive of anyone building anything, but seriously... stop. Put it on ice for 6-12 months. This app sucks. Technology should be used to help people. Spend your time doing something good during the pandemic, not getting them killed.

[deleted]

Re: Getting Users Is Hard

#77

Post by jlgaddis »

> If you want your friends to meet you at the bar, create an "Event". The event has a title of what the event is (e.g. "Going to the bar"). It has a description to get your friends excited (e.g. "$2 margaritas"). It has the address (e.g. "123 SomeBar St."). Lastly it has the time (e.g. "Tonight at 8pm"). As soon as you post it to the feed all of your friends get a notification that you just created a new event. They can then all tell you if they are going by hitting the "attend" button.

So you're making an app whose entire functionality is just one of Facebook's many features? And with Facebook already having a billion or so users -- a large fraction of which likely already use Facebook's "Events" for exactly this purpose -- how do you plan to get everyone to use this completely separate app -- that no one else they know of uses -- over Facebook?

I really do wish you the best of luck but it seems like you've got several things going against you before you've even really got started.

Just the whole "network effects" thing is gonna kill it.

Re: Getting Users Is Hard

#80

Post by ryansam »

jlgaddis wrote: post #77

> If you want your friends to meet you at the bar, create an "Event". The event has a title of what the event is (e.g. "Going to the bar"). It has a description to get your friends excited (e.g. "$2 margaritas"). It has the address (e.g. "123 SomeBar St."). Lastly it has the time (e.g. "Tonight at 8pm"). As soon as you post it to the feed all of your friends get a notification that you just created a new event. They…

You mentioned one of the issues with Facebook. They built a product to connect everyone around the world with their friends online. Then added more features on to that (well I think the original facebook events has been there forever). But events was not their focus. I'm focusing only on events just for cliques of friends. I want to be the best at that and build a product that has the most value to those people.
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