6 ms·

Half of this article could be summed up as "Validate your idea/product. Do not assume what people want." The other half is "Marketing is not stupid". Marketi

Half of this article could be summed up as "Validate your idea/product. Do not assume what people want." The other half is "Marketing is not stupid". Marketing, sadly, is something that many of us are not good at. People still believe that if you build it, they will come. Myself, I have a several dead side projects that nobody came for, as do many here. Also, maybe I've been out of the adword world for too long, so question for you folks that are living it now. Is a $70 CAC about average? I find that a bit high but I suppose if it only takes 2 months to recoup then their CLV must be good.

rpeden 9y ago
I see product/idea validation as part of the marketing process, too. In the intro to marketing course I took in college, one of the points they really tried to ingrain in everyone was that the market research you do before you create a product or feature is one of the most important parts of marketing.
soneca 9y ago
I believe the first validation of product must come regardless of marketing skills. If you built a side project and no one is using it, it is a product problem, not a marketing problem. Actually, I believe a clever marketing tactic can be counter-productive in such an early stage, as you might lure customers to a product that doesn't deliver value. So, your first few paying customers should come from building the product and putting it in front of few people (your personal and professional network, Show HN, Reddit). After you have these first customers then it is time to stop underestimating the marketing effort a successful product demands.
- mgkimsal 9y ago
  > If you built a side project and no one is using it, it is a product problem, not a marketing problem. If you built it but no one knows about it to come and use it, how is that a product problem?
  - soneca 9y ago
    If "no one" means exactly zero person beside yourself you would be right. To grow from exactly zero to a few dozens of potential customers you don't need marketing. You need to tell people what you built. This is not an euphemism for marketing, its exactly what it means, to tell people that you build it. The very first sale must come from yourself telling people you already know pra reaching people in online forums. I don't classify this as "marketing". At most, you need to do sales, not marketing.
    - valuearb 9y ago
      Everything you’ve described, including product design, is marketing. Yes, sales is a very narrow part of marketing to. Marketing is knowing who you are selling to, what they want, and how best to reach them.
lj3 9y ago
I can't speak for most devs with a side project, but for me specifically, market validation and marketing don't feel like real work. I know it's real work and it's necessary work, but they don't feel like it. They feel like goofing off on the internet without the fun. I don't get the immediate gratification of posting on Hacker News or the satisfaction of coding up a new feature. Then there's the added fear of being really bad at a new skill. It doesn't help that the iteration cycle of market validation and marketing is extremely long compared to programming. You could be screwing up for months and not have enough clear data to know you're screwing up. To clarify, this is not me complaining. I realize I need to get over everything I've listed, press forward and learn a new (lucrative!) skill. But I can't be the only dev who feels this way about marketing.
rcarrigan87 9y ago
Average CAC in terms of dollars depends entirely on your industry/product. A good number is all relative.

rpeden 9y ago

I see product/idea validation as part of the marketing process, too. In the intro to marketing course I took in college, one of the points they really tried to ingrain in everyone was that the market research you do before you create a product or feature is one of the most important parts of marketing.

soneca 9y ago

I believe the first validation of product must come regardless of marketing skills. If you built a side project and no one is using it, it is a product problem, not a marketing problem. Actually, I believe a clever marketing tactic can be counter-productive in such an early stage, as you might lure customers to a product that doesn't deliver value. So, your first few paying customers should come from building the product and putting it in front of few people (your personal and professional network, Show HN, Reddit). After you have these first customers then it is time to stop underestimating the marketing effort a successful product demands.

mgkimsal 9y ago
> If you built a side project and no one is using it, it is a product problem, not a marketing problem. If you built it but no one knows about it to come and use it, how is that a product problem?
- soneca 9y ago
  If "no one" means exactly zero person beside yourself you would be right. To grow from exactly zero to a few dozens of potential customers you don't need marketing. You need to tell people what you built. This is not an euphemism for marketing, its exactly what it means, to tell people that you build it. The very first sale must come from yourself telling people you already know pra reaching people in online forums. I don't classify this as "marketing". At most, you need to do sales, not marketing.
  - valuearb 9y ago
    Everything you’ve described, including product design, is marketing. Yes, sales is a very narrow part of marketing to. Marketing is knowing who you are selling to, what they want, and how best to reach them.

lj3 9y ago

I can't speak for most devs with a side project, but for me specifically, market validation and marketing don't feel like real work. I know it's real work and it's necessary work, but they don't feel like it. They feel like goofing off on the internet without the fun. I don't get the immediate gratification of posting on Hacker News or the satisfaction of coding up a new feature. Then there's the added fear of being really bad at a new skill. It doesn't help that the iteration cycle of market validation and marketing is extremely long compared to programming. You could be screwing up for months and not have enough clear data to know you're screwing up. To clarify, this is not me complaining. I realize I need to get over everything I've listed, press forward and learn a new (lucrative!) skill. But I can't be the only dev who feels this way about marketing.

rcarrigan87 9y ago

Average CAC in terms of dollars depends entirely on your industry/product. A good number is all relative.