I run a social networking startup. Earlier in the year we had a lot of frenzy and buzz in the media for our closed beta launch. We didn't anticipate this, but the beta has taken a long time to implement the changes users asked for. Now we are worried the buzz may die down. The plan was to finish the mobile app this month and launch everything by next month. We are really worried now and don't know whether to wait for the mobile app or go to market. I was thinking we could possibly at least open the beta, and then invite users to join as though we had launched, and then do a proper launch event one the app is ready.
In my experience advising start-ups, you can never get enough hand's on time with customers, or potential customers. As Steve Blank says, get out of the building. Too many time opportunities are missed because the founder waited until he/she felt everything was "perfect". Your level of perfection can only be truly judged by the customer.
One of the advantages of doing beta testing is that your users will understand that the product/app may not be flawless and certainly will not contain every feature that they would ultimately want. So put it out there and engage your users in meaningful conversations about their experience. Listen hard to try and understand two main things: if the user doesn't like something, why? If they do, why? It's just as important to understand the reasons for your success as it is your failures, because at the end of the day, you win or you learn.
Good luck, and feel free to contact me as you learn. I may not know your domain, but I know about listening to customers.
Answered 8 years ago
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