Aaron Swartz: How To Launch Software
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Aaron Swartz: How To Launch Software
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Re: Aaron Swartz: How To Launch Software
#2Can you guess which method cuil chose.
If you remember what cuil is of course.
Perhaps they should have read this first.
Re: Aaron Swartz: How To Launch Software
#337Signals has launched four (4) commercial products, and takes in (by my guess, from headcount and subscription numbers) mid-high 7 figures from them.
Aaron Swartz has launched, by my count, no successful products (unless I'm wrong and Reddit wasn't already a success story when he got there).
From Aaron's own web page, here's what I get when I click on his "my day job" link:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/29804691@N02/2786744327/
Why am I being such a dick about this? Because the argument he's making is disingenuous. Aaron advocates for an extended friends-and-family beta before launch. Aaron has no idea what 37signals does to beta and dogfood their product before the "Hollywood Launch". From what I can tell, everything 37signals does happens just before "step 5" in his master plan.
The difference between 37signals and Aaron Swartz isn't methodology. Methodology is a band-aid. The difference between Aaron Swartz and 37signals is ability to execute.
Here's a much better writeup from a much more credible source on the same topic:
Re: Aaron Swartz: How To Launch Software
#437Signals has launched four (4) commercial products, and takes in (by my guess, from headcount and subscription numbers) mid-high 7 figures from them. Aaron Swartz has launched, by my count, no successful products (unless I'm wrong and Reddit wasn't already a success story when he got there). From Aaron's own web page, here's what I get when I click on his "my day job" link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/29804691@N02/…
I think that's a harsh analysis and I don't think it's necessary to get personal about it. I'd say the launch of gmail was expertly done, and one that a lot of people copy.
Look at what happens when companies decide to "release" to everyone at the same time with a big PR frenzy - cuil. The companies that slowly but constantly grow seem to do better than the ones that go for a big style "launch" IMHO.
Releasing with a big style "Version 1" approach just doesn't fit with the dynamism of the web. Throw something up, get a few users, update it every day, and grow slowly but surely.
Re: Aaron Swartz: How To Launch Software
#537Signals has launched four (4) commercial products, and takes in (by my guess, from headcount and subscription numbers) mid-high 7 figures from them. Aaron Swartz has launched, by my count, no successful products (unless I'm wrong and Reddit wasn't already a success story when he got there). From Aaron's own web page, here's what I get when I click on his "my day job" link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/29804691@N02/…
When you're finished with the ad hominem part of your attack, I'd just like to weigh in and say that Aaron got this exactly right.
Re: Aaron Swartz: How To Launch Software
#637Signals has launched four (4) commercial products, and takes in (by my guess, from headcount and subscription numbers) mid-high 7 figures from them. Aaron Swartz has launched, by my count, no successful products (unless I'm wrong and Reddit wasn't already a success story when he got there). From Aaron's own web page, here's what I get when I click on his "my day job" link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/29804691@N02/…
While I agree 37signals has a much more impressive product track record than Aaron does and know quite a bit about marketing their products, the source of a statement has nothing to do with its validity. Either Aaron's argument is right, or it's wrong, independent of Aaron's status as a developer or entrepreneur.
That being said, I think Aaron is right about the proper method to launch a website, and also that if you look how 37signals actually acts, they launch products exactly that way.
Re: Aaron Swartz: How To Launch Software
#737Signals has launched four (4) commercial products, and takes in (by my guess, from headcount and subscription numbers) mid-high 7 figures from them. Aaron Swartz has launched, by my count, no successful products (unless I'm wrong and Reddit wasn't already a success story when he got there). From Aaron's own web page, here's what I get when I click on his "my day job" link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/29804691@N02/…
When you're finished with the ad hominem part of your attack, I'd just like to weigh in and say that Aaron got this exactly right.
Aaron advocates avoiding the "Hollywood Launch", marketing your product only after you've verified that "random people" are satisfied with the offering.
I'm asking you: are you saying that after Fog Creek spends 9 months building and testing a product, dogfooding it with internal users, and running closed beta testing, that you would avoid publicity for it until random paying customers started liking it?
Because I feel like I remember you making an actual movie about the last product you launched.
Re: Aaron Swartz: How To Launch Software
#837Signals has launched four (4) commercial products, and takes in (by my guess, from headcount and subscription numbers) mid-high 7 figures from them. Aaron Swartz has launched, by my count, no successful products (unless I'm wrong and Reddit wasn't already a success story when he got there). From Aaron's own web page, here's what I get when I click on his "my day job" link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/29804691@N02/…
It could be that Aaron is talking from bitter experience here.
Infogami was very much a Hollywood launch. He did almost exactly what 37signals suggested. He posted a teaser as soon as he got into the YCombinator program. He had mavens and insiders try out the product (I think; I can't imagine PG not trying out a YC startup's product before launch and showing it to his friends). And then he launched with a big splash.
And people hated it.
I suspect that product quality has far more bearing on startup success than how you launch. And as you say, the difference between 37signals and Aaron Schwartz is ability to execute. But Aaron's advice is a good way to find out if you haven't yet executed well and improve the product before everyone else finds out.
Re: Aaron Swartz: How To Launch Software
#937Signals has launched four (4) commercial products, and takes in (by my guess, from headcount and subscription numbers) mid-high 7 figures from them. Aaron Swartz has launched, by my count, no successful products (unless I'm wrong and Reddit wasn't already a success story when he got there). From Aaron's own web page, here's what I get when I click on his "my day job" link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/29804691@N02/…
I think that's a harsh analysis and I don't think it's necessary to get personal about it. I'd say the launch of gmail was expertly done, and one that a lot of people copy. Look at what happens when companies decide to "release" to everyone at the same time with a big PR frenzy - cuil. The companies that slowly but constantly grow seem to do better than the ones that go for a big style "launch" IMHO. Releasing with a…
You're right: if you do a glamour launch of your product without making the effort on quality, you end up like Cuil (and I concede that Cuil is a good counterexample).
I object to the "either-or" argument the original post makes, and I object to the snide "we're only doing it this way because 37signals says to", as if 37signals doesn't have a store of credibility here that Aaron lacks.
Re: Aaron Swartz: How To Launch Software
#10But does the Hollywood launch hurt? It seems like the reasonable way to go is to get a big bump when you open doors, iterate using the feedback of people that stay, and get more coverage whenever you release a big new feature set.
Certain sites don't really make sense with invite codes too.