Re:Sell it before you build it
by skmurphy on Sunday March 29, 2009 @02:55AM
(#537184)
As someone who has been interested in paying for a SaaS or Hosted version of Etherpad since January it's been annoying.
Because I plan to use it with my customers I knew I wanted to pay for a supported SaaS/hosted version. I have been surprised that we have been unable to have any meaningful discussion about it. I know that one interested user doesn't constitute a market, but I was dismayed with the lack of meaningful engagement beyond we will notify you when it's ready.
I think the part that's was left out of the Venture Hacks article was when someone tells you they want to buy it, have a conversation with them to understand how they plan to use it and how they value it (what are the alternatives that they are comparing it against).
Because I plan to use it with my customers I knew I wanted to pay for a supported SaaS/hosted version. I have been surprised that we have been unable to have any meaningful discussion about it. I know that one interested user doesn't constitute a market, but I was dismayed with the lack of meaningful engagement beyond we will notify you when it's ready.
I think the part that's was left out of the Venture Hacks article was when someone tells you they want to buy it, have a conversation with them to understand how they plan to use it and how they value it (what are the alternatives that they are comparing it against).