Re:Ask YC: User feedback?
by nostrademons on Wednesday October 03, 2007 @05:33PM
(#62786)
I liked Reddit's system. Click on a prominent "feedback" link (in the early Reddit it was in the top left, and one of the most prominent actions on the page), it takes you to a page with a textbox that e-mails the founders. I submitted a couple bug reports to Reddit when it was a few months old and got back fixes within the hour, which was one of the main reasons I decided to stick around.
Also, don't underestimate the usefulness of forums. They become a pain to manage when you get big, but they're absolutely invaluable at getting feedback and building community when you're small. Forums let power-users help newbies (pulling some of the support load off you), and they also give users a chance to weigh in with "No, that's a terrible idea" when another user proposes a half-baked idea. When I was working on FictionAlley, there were many times when a user came up with a suggestion, I was like "Yeah, I can implement that", then other users chimed in with "Please don't; it'll ruin things for the rest of us. Here's what you could try instead."
Re:Ask YC: User feedback?
by vlad on Wednesday October 03, 2007 @07:04PM
(#62817)
Great post. I realized forums help build a community and augment help files and help desks, but it escaped me that forums also help brainstorm ways through bad ideas without offending the userbase.
Also, don't underestimate the usefulness of forums. They become a pain to manage when you get big, but they're absolutely invaluable at getting feedback and building community when you're small. Forums let power-users help newbies (pulling some of the support load off you), and they also give users a chance to weigh in with "No, that's a terrible idea" when another user proposes a half-baked idea. When I was working on FictionAlley, there were many times when a user came up with a suggestion, I was like "Yeah, I can implement that", then other users chimed in with "Please don't; it'll ruin things for the rest of us. Here's what you could try instead."