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Right. I really want you to sell me this product because this solves (I think?) a problem I often face. The product page (and the blog) makes a big thing about

by ErrantX 16y ago

Right. I really want you to sell me this product because this solves (I think?) a problem I often face. The product page (and the blog) makes a big thing about the social aspect and so on. Which is fine; but I still have no idea what exactly it does. It tracks my movement. When? How? What exactly does it do? Clearly your are hip and cool, which is great. But I've clicked every link and I am still none the wiser as to the product... sorry. EDIT: Right, I noted the TC link (http://techcrunch.com/2010/12/17/fitfu-wants-to-get-you-exercising-at-your-desk-and-everywhere-else/ http://techcrunch.com/2010/12/17/fitfu-wants-to-get-you-exer...) posted elsewhere. That was much more explanatory, now I understand a lot more. In fact (and, man, I never thought I would say this!) the TechCrunch copy is pretty solid explanatory text, you should take careful note of it and consider at least a page that says something similar about what the product is.

JofArnold 16y ago
Definitely; the TC post does a really good job of explaining it. We included our post here more as a way of introducing ourselves to HN. I'll link to the TC post from the top of ours. Thx! :)
- ErrantX 16y ago
  I do mean this generally about your whole site though. The main reason I make this point, and I want to make it stronger, is that I have to pay to try your app. There is nothing wrong with that, usually I'm pretty accepting of vague product descriptions because I can try it for free (or for a short time) and then pay if it is useful. But right now I have to pay just to find out exactly what this is... I actually bought it because the TC post interested me enough to see this as a possible solution to the problem I face. And, of course, I never really begrudge a small cost to give something I understand a shot. But if I had come to your site without the TC explanation I would be to confused to consider paying. I strongly recommend a plain english explanation of the app somewhere. It really won't hurt you in this case I think :) (I have more detailed comments & advice that I would be happy to give, drop me a line [email in profile] if you are interested)
  - JofArnold 16y ago
    Yeah, that makes sense. Have emailed you also!
    - ErrantX 16y ago
      Replied. I might be barking up the wrong tree, but it never hurts to at least pass it on :)
kmfrk 16y ago
I also had no idea what it basically did, but, as I often do, I bought it from a developer and designer standpoint to learn what they had done. To be honest, I still find it a bit weird after purchasing it. The sound in the app is particularly annoying. I can't wrap my head around it, but the fact that they've received funding from YC suggests that there's more to it.
- ErrantX 16y ago
  Actually; I really liked it. Yes, there are parts that could improve. And, yes, I don't think it is marketed right. But there is a wealth of opportunity and information in the app and the social aspect has potential. I'm not a big iPhone app user but I could actually see myself using this given the right motivation :)
- JofArnold 16y ago
  Could you clarify what sounds you find annoying. There's only two: 1/ The music - which you can turn off from the home screen 2/ The counting... which we can improve of course, but having it count is pretty useful :)
  - kmfrk 16y ago
    When I started up the app the first time, there was a prompt with the mascot saying something. It was very loud, but fortunately, I wasn't wearing my headphones at the time. I think there was one later on, when I chose to start an exercise, but it wasn't as loud, so I guess that one's fine. I feel with sound in apps like I do on websites: it shouldn't start automatically when you visit something for the first time. There should be a clear contract about when you'll hear music.
    - JofArnold 16y ago
      Totally understand where you are coming from - thanks for elaborating.
JofArnold 16y ago
------------- MINI "ASK HN": ------------- For those of your who've got it and get how it works, is there a simpler way of explaining the features that matter most to you? We thought "personal trainer in your pocket that gets you doing little bits of activity throughout the day" was an ok start, but I think we were wrong; people (at least on HN) are really interested in getting to the specifics. Suggestions?
- ollysb 16y ago
  To the end of clarifying your message - Given that people don't do, little bits of exercise throughout the day, I need some examples of exercises that I could do at my desk, or in the office kitchen or on an escalator. I simply couldn't visualise what I'd be doing, have you thought of some clever exercises I could do where I would normally feel a bit awkward about doing them? (I know a trainer that has a bunch of these). Perhaps we're just talking about exercises that people are already familiar with, lunges, squats etc. ? If that is the case then I don't think an iphone app is going to change their behaviour in which case I would be focussing on how your app is useful at the times of the day when people usually exercise.
  - JofArnold 16y ago
    Those are very helpful observations - thanks! I was thinking about this as I was going to sleep last night, and it dawned on me that what we could do is maybe have simple two-frame animations of people doing the exercises (perhaps in various locations) with the app counting in the graphics somehow. The pelvic thrusting exercise is definitely one that people feel awkward doing in public. Hadn't thought about that angle before - one of the reasons users cited they liked CrunchFu was that they feel awkward/self-concious in gyms. That's a really good angel. It's surprisingly effective at behaviour change, but having these other angles could be a much better hook. /me adds to todo list
tobtoh 16y ago
Absolutely agree with ErrantX. As it is a fitness app, I went looking to find out what exercises they would be encouraging me to do - nada. The best I could work out from the screenshots was crunches. And from the TC article it mentions 8 exercises and hints that PushupFu, CrunchFu, SquatFu and PullupFu are combined into Fitfu ... but I still am no clearer as to what exercises are supported. And for me, knowing what exercises it supports is important. If FitFu is supposed to encourage me to 'move more' throughout the day, well crunches aren't much use at work - I'm not lying down on the grubby work carpet in my shirt and slacks and do crunches. If it's pull-ups, well I can't do those at work either. Sounds great for weekends/days off though (and I love the concept overall) - but again, would love to know what movements you are encouraging.

by ErrantX 16y ago

JofArnold 16y ago

Definitely; the TC post does a really good job of explaining it. We included our post here more as a way of introducing ourselves to HN. I'll link to the TC post from the top of ours. Thx! :)

ErrantX 16y ago
I do mean this generally about your whole site though. The main reason I make this point, and I want to make it stronger, is that I have to pay to try your app. There is nothing wrong with that, usually I'm pretty accepting of vague product descriptions because I can try it for free (or for a short time) and then pay if it is useful. But right now I have to pay just to find out exactly what this is... I actually bought it because the TC post interested me enough to see this as a possible solution to the problem I face. And, of course, I never really begrudge a small cost to give something I understand a shot. But if I had come to your site without the TC explanation I would be to confused to consider paying. I strongly recommend a plain english explanation of the app somewhere. It really won't hurt you in this case I think :) (I have more detailed comments & advice that I would be happy to give, drop me a line [email in profile] if you are interested)
- JofArnold 16y ago
  Yeah, that makes sense. Have emailed you also!
  - ErrantX 16y ago
    Replied. I might be barking up the wrong tree, but it never hurts to at least pass it on :)

kmfrk 16y ago

I also had no idea what it basically did, but, as I often do, I bought it from a developer and designer standpoint to learn what they had done. To be honest, I still find it a bit weird after purchasing it. The sound in the app is particularly annoying. I can't wrap my head around it, but the fact that they've received funding from YC suggests that there's more to it.

ErrantX 16y ago
Actually; I really liked it. Yes, there are parts that could improve. And, yes, I don't think it is marketed right. But there is a wealth of opportunity and information in the app and the social aspect has potential. I'm not a big iPhone app user but I could actually see myself using this given the right motivation :)
JofArnold 16y ago
Could you clarify what sounds you find annoying. There's only two: 1/ The music - which you can turn off from the home screen 2/ The counting... which we can improve of course, but having it count is pretty useful :)
- kmfrk 16y ago
  When I started up the app the first time, there was a prompt with the mascot saying something. It was very loud, but fortunately, I wasn't wearing my headphones at the time. I think there was one later on, when I chose to start an exercise, but it wasn't as loud, so I guess that one's fine. I feel with sound in apps like I do on websites: it shouldn't start automatically when you visit something for the first time. There should be a clear contract about when you'll hear music.
  - JofArnold 16y ago
    Totally understand where you are coming from - thanks for elaborating.

JofArnold 16y ago

------------- MINI "ASK HN": ------------- For those of your who've got it and get how it works, is there a simpler way of explaining the features that matter most to you? We thought "personal trainer in your pocket that gets you doing little bits of activity throughout the day" was an ok start, but I think we were wrong; people (at least on HN) are really interested in getting to the specifics. Suggestions?

ollysb 16y ago
To the end of clarifying your message - Given that people don't do, little bits of exercise throughout the day, I need some examples of exercises that I could do at my desk, or in the office kitchen or on an escalator. I simply couldn't visualise what I'd be doing, have you thought of some clever exercises I could do where I would normally feel a bit awkward about doing them? (I know a trainer that has a bunch of these). Perhaps we're just talking about exercises that people are already familiar with, lunges, squats etc. ? If that is the case then I don't think an iphone app is going to change their behaviour in which case I would be focussing on how your app is useful at the times of the day when people usually exercise.
- JofArnold 16y ago
  Those are very helpful observations - thanks! I was thinking about this as I was going to sleep last night, and it dawned on me that what we could do is maybe have simple two-frame animations of people doing the exercises (perhaps in various locations) with the app counting in the graphics somehow. The pelvic thrusting exercise is definitely one that people feel awkward doing in public. Hadn't thought about that angle before - one of the reasons users cited they liked CrunchFu was that they feel awkward/self-concious in gyms. That's a really good angel. It's surprisingly effective at behaviour change, but having these other angles could be a much better hook. /me adds to todo list

tobtoh 16y ago

Absolutely agree with ErrantX. As it is a fitness app, I went looking to find out what exercises they would be encouraging me to do - nada. The best I could work out from the screenshots was crunches. And from the TC article it mentions 8 exercises and hints that PushupFu, CrunchFu, SquatFu and PullupFu are combined into Fitfu ... but I still am no clearer as to what exercises are supported. And for me, knowing what exercises it supports is important. If FitFu is supposed to encourage me to 'move more' throughout the day, well crunches aren't much use at work - I'm not lying down on the grubby work carpet in my shirt and slacks and do crunches. If it's pull-ups, well I can't do those at work either. Sounds great for weekends/days off though (and I love the concept overall) - but again, would love to know what movements you are encouraging.