Ask HN: Followed all advice, why still no virality?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4196304

by agranig • 14 years ago

4 12 14 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

So I listened to all start-up advice from the tech crunch, the next web, hacker news and more, launched my own start-up today at

http://www.doublestealth.com

but where is the virality? I'm doing what people want (although I don't know exactly what it is, but that's the point of MVP and pivoting, no?), but no one wants it? I don't want to reveal any more details because people might steal it and run away with it [sic!]. Please help!?

youngdev• 14 years ago

I hope Mayans are wrong and I get to see your launch or acquisition in 2018. Good luck..

cracell2• 14 years ago

I'm apprehensive about your product because of the grey background. Studies have shown that blue is very calming and perhaps you should add some more of it. http://www.precisionintermedia.com/color.html

Also how do I share your launch progress bar with my friends on Facebook?

agranig4• 14 years ago

Blue is so facebook, and everybody hates facebook at the moment, so we are grey/yellow for now. Has some potential for pivoting though.

And since customer satisfaction is everything, we published our progress on https://twitter.com/doublestealth/status/220277242935246848 just for you.

kellros• 14 years ago

Virality? What are we supposed to get excited about - a clock ticking down?

agranig4• 14 years ago

Yes!?

duiker101• 14 years ago

this id a joke right? i mean what should go viral in this? do you expect people to go around screaming "oh my god a website that i do not know what it's for and neither do the creators".

Meh.

cracell2• 14 years ago

It is mocking all of the startups with splash pages trying to promote their prelaunch product with absolutely nothing to show about the product or even a description of what it actually is.

agranig4• 14 years ago

You are just jealous of our plan :)

sirwitti2• 14 years ago

one thing to note about virality is that users only share if they care about you/your company/your product.

so, you're not giving your potential users any hint of what you're up to and on the other hand expect everybody tell their friends about it.

your twitter account seems to be 1h old and your website tells me that you will launch in 6 and a half years, which most people interpret as you say/plan/hope/... to launch at that time.

seriously, if your idea is good people will copy you. cope with it. once again, execution is what matters. and the good thing about this is, that execution can't be copied that easy.

if you ask me do the following: start a blog. write about what you do every day (product, idea, company,...). follow people of your field on twitter. tweet every day.

don't tell anyone you won't reveal more details because you'll be copied. (a little secret (sorry to be that direct): it makes you look either unprofessional or like a jerk. you don't want both i guess.

tell everybody about your awesome idea. you'll get valuable feedback from people you wouldn't expect it.

sorry, this got so long.

martin

agranig4• 14 years ago

If you go lean, revenue is everything. You start with something small, you fight to get every single customer, you grow with every project, staffing up another developer or sysops engineer paid from your own pocket to do a bigger project than the past one, trying to get your "side-product" ready to not be dependent of more projects at some point...

And then, you've the Double Stealth. Why bother with revenues, if VCs are throwing money at you? Why bother with customers at all? Why bother with products? Hell, why not just completely hiding what we do, as long as the money is flowing? Problem? :D

sirwitti2• 14 years ago

i kind of understand your point. the problem i see is that it might make you think you're doing something amazing while not receiving and adapting to customer feedback.

so in the end it's very linkely to build something that people don't care about or don't need.

this would be perfectly fine if you'd use your own money. but your investors invest in you because they want their money back plus profits.

so, you're right. now you're fine. but when the money or money or both are gone you get into trouble if there's no revenue and profit.

good luck!

shyn3• 14 years ago

Your page is kinda disappointing.

I click it and I get nothing of value. As a customer I see... cool a product...

What does it do? Nothing. Why do I need it? I don't. What will it help me solve? The owner doesn't know.

I don't know about your target market (maybe u have one?) but if it was me .. you wouldn't receive a tweet/share or anything of that sort from my end because well I will not have the time/energy and especially the MOTIVATION to do that for you.

Also if you are scared that someone will steal your idea then you might as well get out of the market. I bet you have competitors for whatever you are doing, maybe they are hidden on page 102 of Google search, but they exist. If you can't differentiate your product to a customer, nor can you explain your product you have just lost many opportunities.

It's like going to the bank and saying, "I need a loan for a business." They will ask, "What kind of a business?"

The sad part is you might be getting a good bunch of visits but I bet your bounce rate is incredible because there are millions of pages with millions of products on the internet.

Ask HN: Followed all advice, why still no virality?

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