4 ms·

YC companies are told to launch an MVP with a design that's good enough as fast as possible and iterate from there. Spending months obsessing over a pixel-perf

by il 14y ago

YC companies are told to launch an MVP with a design that's good enough as fast as possible and iterate from there. Spending months obsessing over a pixel-perfect design before you know you've made something people want is the wrong way to launch a startup.

larrys 14y ago
"Spending months obsessing over a pixel-perfect design before you know you've made something people want " Kickstarter projects as only one example run contrary to that thinking. It is easier to get people to buy into an idea if it looks professional and is well executed. This is not saying to throw money out and to "Spend... months obsessing over a pixel-perfect design" Hiring a designer instead of 99designs is not the same as "spending months obsessing..". This is not to imply that hiring a designer is always appropriate and using 99designs is not. It depends on the particular situation and circumstances obviously. As an example google (which PG cited and forgetting it's one data point) is a service that is free and the results are immediately apparent after using it. If google were trying to crack corporate america with a paid product that design wouldn't have gotten them anywhere.
- eli 14y ago
  Uh, Google was trying to crack corporate america with a paid product at the time that website was around. Before they launched ads in 2000, all the revenue came from selling the Google Search Appliance.
- kmonsen 14y ago
  kickstarter => selling to the masses yc => selling to experts who understand the domain Design will be more important at kickstarter.
- il 14y ago
  Most enterprise software in 2012 looks a lot worse than Google in 1998.
- ebrenes 14y ago
  But you don't even need a product to do a Kickstarter. In fact in most cases the product doesn't even exist, the only thing that exists is the design and even that gets changed once the projects is funded sometimes to the chagrin of the backers when they receive a product that did not meet the original design expectations. (for example: http://a.wholelottanothing.org/2012/01/lessons-for-kickstarter-creators-from-the-worst-project-i-ever-funded-on-kickstarter.html http://a.wholelottanothing.org/2012/01/lessons-for-kickstart...) So yes, if all you're selling is an idea, instead of a product, then of course design matters as that's all you've got.

by il 14y ago

larrys 14y ago

"Spending months obsessing over a pixel-perfect design before you know you've made something people want " Kickstarter projects as only one example run contrary to that thinking. It is easier to get people to buy into an idea if it looks professional and is well executed. This is not saying to throw money out and to "Spend... months obsessing over a pixel-perfect design" Hiring a designer instead of 99designs is not the same as "spending months obsessing..". This is not to imply that hiring a designer is always appropriate and using 99designs is not. It depends on the particular situation and circumstances obviously. As an example google (which PG cited and forgetting it's one data point) is a service that is free and the results are immediately apparent after using it. If google were trying to crack corporate america with a paid product that design wouldn't have gotten them anywhere.

eli 14y ago
Uh, Google was trying to crack corporate america with a paid product at the time that website was around. Before they launched ads in 2000, all the revenue came from selling the Google Search Appliance.
kmonsen 14y ago
kickstarter => selling to the masses yc => selling to experts who understand the domain Design will be more important at kickstarter.
il 14y ago
Most enterprise software in 2012 looks a lot worse than Google in 1998.
ebrenes 14y ago
But you don't even need a product to do a Kickstarter. In fact in most cases the product doesn't even exist, the only thing that exists is the design and even that gets changed once the projects is funded sometimes to the chagrin of the backers when they receive a product that did not meet the original design expectations. (for example: http://a.wholelottanothing.org/2012/01/lessons-for-kickstarter-creators-from-the-worst-project-i-ever-funded-on-kickstarter.html http://a.wholelottanothing.org/2012/01/lessons-for-kickstart...) So yes, if all you're selling is an idea, instead of a product, then of course design matters as that's all you've got.