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These founders haphazardly threw a new paid feature into their app just to try to impress the YC team? They should have taken the time to do market research and

These founders haphazardly threw a new paid feature into their app just to try to impress the YC team? They should have taken the time to do market research and do it right rather than risk alienating their user base. I wonder if getting rejected was a big enough blow to their ego that they couldn’t see clearly, just like college applicants will go to top ranked colleges with no concern for the price or the risk/reward profile of that decision, but instead so that they can brag about being the best. YC is “the best”, but that doesn’t make it right for every startup.

cheez 7y ago
Umm... No, they built something for years and gave it away for free without knowing if it was worth money to anyone. It was worth money. Therefore, they have left a lot of money on the table. In my opinion, they're still not charging enough but they'll work that out. Keep at it OP.
GraffitiTim 7y ago
They took the feedback to heart, built fast, and got paying users! Where's the big mistake there? I think one of the good things about YC, is if you try to optimize for getting into YC, you're actually building your startup in a constructive manner.
- albertgoeswoof 7y ago
  They might have just killed their MAU growth potential Imagine if FB had a premium plan in 2008, they wouldn’t have made it. In this case it probably makes sense to charge early on, but it doesn’t look like they did much research on the decision
  - closetohome 7y ago
    Yeah it sounds like they basically eliminated their free tier. I already have access to a half dozen video editors that don't watermark their output.
  - StephenCanis 7y ago
    They did get advice from some of the most experience startup investors in the world. Who's biggest question was why they hadn't started charging users. Taking advice from highly experienced people is probably better then trying to do your own research. How would you even research such a decision if not ask very experience startup founders and investors?
wayoutthere 7y ago
Maybe true of startup accelerators in general, but getting into YC is like going to Harvard. Even if you’re in a shit major, just being affiliated will open doors for you that would otherwise remain closed. People will take your phone calls far more often if “Harvard” shows up in your LinkedIn profile. It’s not a guarantee of success, but it definitely helps you build the relationships you need to participate in the “global domination” game (which is the game you’re playing, because that’s the game investors are playing).
stOneskull 7y ago
it seems it wasn't just a plan, but a grand plan.. who's at the top of the HN leaderboard?
jamestimmins 7y ago
The article doesn't indicate the amount of planning or research they already completed prior to this phase. It's pretty reasonable to assume that they knew what they wanted to charge for, but that it just hadn't been prioritized yet. If they were able to quickly get existing users to pay then they clearly had some idea what their users wanted.

cheez 7y ago

Umm... No, they built something for years and gave it away for free without knowing if it was worth money to anyone. It was worth money. Therefore, they have left a lot of money on the table. In my opinion, they're still not charging enough but they'll work that out. Keep at it OP.

GraffitiTim 7y ago

They took the feedback to heart, built fast, and got paying users! Where's the big mistake there? I think one of the good things about YC, is if you try to optimize for getting into YC, you're actually building your startup in a constructive manner.

albertgoeswoof 7y ago
They might have just killed their MAU growth potential Imagine if FB had a premium plan in 2008, they wouldn’t have made it. In this case it probably makes sense to charge early on, but it doesn’t look like they did much research on the decision
- closetohome 7y ago
  Yeah it sounds like they basically eliminated their free tier. I already have access to a half dozen video editors that don't watermark their output.
- StephenCanis 7y ago
  They did get advice from some of the most experience startup investors in the world. Who's biggest question was why they hadn't started charging users. Taking advice from highly experienced people is probably better then trying to do your own research. How would you even research such a decision if not ask very experience startup founders and investors?

wayoutthere 7y ago

Maybe true of startup accelerators in general, but getting into YC is like going to Harvard. Even if you’re in a shit major, just being affiliated will open doors for you that would otherwise remain closed. People will take your phone calls far more often if “Harvard” shows up in your LinkedIn profile. It’s not a guarantee of success, but it definitely helps you build the relationships you need to participate in the “global domination” game (which is the game you’re playing, because that’s the game investors are playing).

stOneskull 7y ago

it seems it wasn't just a plan, but a grand plan.. who's at the top of the HN leaderboard?

jamestimmins 7y ago

The article doesn't indicate the amount of planning or research they already completed prior to this phase. It's pretty reasonable to assume that they knew what they wanted to charge for, but that it just hadn't been prioritized yet. If they were able to quickly get existing users to pay then they clearly had some idea what their users wanted.