I'm perfectly aware that there are many facets of the issue but basically, what we're talking about is crossing the chasm [1]. A lot of products are in a chicken & egg situation even if they try to deny it. So much more fun stuff could be done with Around The World for example if more people play.
Would you have used MySpace if no one else was using it? Marketing is like analytics, it's a hell of a lot more fun and easier of there's some momentum to it.
What I'm saying is that I've tried "build it and they'll come" and even for stuff that individually people really really like they're not engaging enough to build the necessary momentum to cross the chasm.
Ideally you want to hit upon a product that you don't have to beg people to use. Yes, you will have to do marketing, but that can be a fun (albeit arduous) process. Building product is a fun challenge, but marketing a product and getting quick and positive feedback is equally rewarding in my book. You really have to love both if you want to build a successful website/app/company (assuming that's what you want to do). Begging just comes across as desperate and is showing the world you don't believe your product stands on its own merit.
I guess it comes down to whether you're solving a problem and whether that problem is painful enough for people to want to switch services or start using a new service. It does take some convincing. AirBnB struggled for a long time with that chicken and egg problem, and even did some wild gimmicks for PR purposes (Obama O's cereal).
Comment
I'm perfectly aware that there are many facets of the issue but basically, what we're talking about is crossing the chasm [1]. A lot of products are in a chicken & egg situation even if they try to deny it. So much more fun stuff could be done with Around The World for example if more people play.
Would you have used MySpace if no one else was using it? Marketing is like analytics, it's a hell of a lot more fun and easier of there's some momentum to it.
What I'm saying is that I've tried "build it and they'll come" and even for stuff that individually people really really like they're not engaging enough to build the necessary momentum to cross the chasm.
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crossing_the_Chasm
Parent comment
Ideally you want to hit upon a product that you don't have to beg people to use. Yes, you will have to do marketing, but that can be a fun (albeit arduous) process. Building product is a fun challenge, but marketing a product and getting quick and positive feedback is equally rewarding in my book. You really have to love both if you want to build a successful website/app/company (assuming that's what you want to do). Begging just comes across as desperate and is showing the world you don't believe your product stands on its own merit.
Replies
I guess it comes down to whether you're solving a problem and whether that problem is painful enough for people to want to switch services or start using a new service. It does take some convincing. AirBnB struggled for a long time with that chicken and egg problem, and even did some wild gimmicks for PR purposes (Obama O's cereal).