3 ms·
Until they delighted me, by addressing all the niggling details that I didn't like about the old version of the feeder. At which point I voluntarily wrote a bl
by codinghorror 14y ago
Until they delighted me, by addressing all the niggling details that I didn't like about the old version of the feeder.
At which point I voluntarily wrote a blog post that described how wonderful their feeders are, and how thoughtful the revised product was, to over a hundred thousand people.
So which kind of product do you want to be?
- rudiger 14y agoThe imperfect product that ships. Shipping is a feature, too.
- codinghorror 14y agoDid I say it wasn't? You know what else is a feature? Being awesome!
- StavrosK 14y agoI guess it comes down to "would you release an adequate product now and a great one later, or would you skip the adequate one completely?"
- danielmiller 14y agoI'd love to have a delightful product, and I'd love for it to be given positive press to over a hundred thousand people! But like Android back in 2008, I don't think I'd get there without scrappily alleviating a pain point, getting my foot in proverbial door, and just shipping. Had Google waited and waited, they might be where Microsoft is now with WP7—an awesome product with really nice details that no one uses. Granted, it's easier to switch cat feeders than phone OSes, but I think the point still stands—if you alleviate a pain point[1], you can tweak your product to make it delightful later. Thanks for keeping up with your blog, and congrats on your three little humans! Do they make automatic feeders for those yet? Perhaps if you clean out your old cat feeders really well... [1]: If you enter an existing market with nothing to differentiate your product (including price), then yes—you're probably going to fail.