Yesterday, I walked down the block from my apartment to the This Week in Startups studio. Jason Calacanis, Ryan Sarver and I chatted about Apple’s latest announcement, cord-cutting, on-demand services, and more. As a long-time viewer of the show, it was an honor to join (again).
My name is Ryan Hoover.
Founder of Product Hunt.
Learn more about me.
Subscribe to receive the first chapter of Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products for free.
Founder of Product Hunt.
Learn more about me.
Early (5:30am!) this morning I visited Bloomberg TV’s beautiful SF studio, to chat with Betty Liu and John Sculley about Product Hunt. Here it is:
This week, friends Andrew Chen (Entrepreneur, Investor. Ex-Adtech and VC) and Nir Eyal (Author of Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products, Blogger at NirAndFar.com), join me, Ryan Hoover, to chat about products. We discuss an unusual app called Ethan, habit-forming products, and the rise of pet products. Enjoy.
Products mentioned:
- Ethan - A messaging app for messaging Ethan
- TD4W - A party in your pants
- Ping - You’re going to like me (new app by Secret)
- Weave - Tinder for professionals nearby
- Path Talk - Smart, Private Messaging
- Mailbox - Fly through your email.
- SaneBox - Prioritization for your inbox
- Spritz - Reading reimagined. Technology for faster communication.
- Readtime - Helps me get through my pocket
- Quibb - Professional network to share industry news and analysis
- Link Bubble - Mobile browsing done right
- Kloof - Show the world how much you love your pet
- BarkBox -
- BarkShop - Find The Perfect Pawduct For Your Pooch, from Bark & Co
- BarkCam - The first camera app designed to make your pup a star
- Sesame - Themed gift sets delivered in a beautiful box
Subscribe on iTunes or SoundCloud.
A few days ago, Ethan blew up on the internet. Ethan is both a person and an app. Its creator, Ethan, first introduced his app on Product Hunt:
Hi I am Ethan, who made Ethan, a messaging app for messaging Ethan. Ask me anything I’m here. To chat privately, find me on Ethan.
I read his description and smiled. Within a few hours it broke 100 upvotes and Business Insider’s Steven Tweedie, wrote a piece:
I hope you didn’t have anything else going on today, Ethan. http://t.co/4WMBg3wwO4
— Ryan Hoover (@rrhoover) October 9, 2014This morning, I emailed Ethan and asked how many people were messaging him. Thumb-strained Ethan replied with:
I’m literally trying to respond to as many people as possible (I want to learn the pattern and also don’t miss out on any potentially interesting type of questions)[…] I get a lot of messages like “You probably won’t answer me because there’s so many people messaging you”.
[I]’ve been basically texting non-stop for the last 48 hours with 3 hours sleep each day, and each message takes around a second to 10 to respond, so I guess we can calculate based on that.
Initially I was using the app to respond to people but at some point I had to turn it off and set up a ghetto webpage to handle responses because my thumb typing wasn’t fast enough.
Dumb Apps
As expected, Ethan has its haters.
If you thought Yo was sign SV jumped the shark, see Ethan app:
http://t.co/4VIdaWrxMP #disrupt #tech #INNOVATING!
— Mary Kuris (@marykuris) October 9, 2014"imagine a world where everyone can have their own chat app" please shoot me plz http://t.co/Ceg62ak47Q
— Jaden Geller (@JadenGeller) October 9, 2014What the hell is the matter with everyone? http://t.co/fV53Woxkew
— Dorsey Shaw (@dorseyshaw) October 9, 2014Everyone is entitled to their opinion but it irks me when people put others down for exploring new ideas.
"Dumb Apps" Are a Good Thing
Shortly after Tweedie’s coverage of Ethan, Alyson from BI kicked off a discussion on Twitter:
Why is there a trend of people creating the dumbest apps they can think of, and others loving it?
— Alyson Shontell (@ajs) October 9, 2014.@ajs increasingly, apps = media. Lightweight distractions that aren’t intended to provide long-lasting utility.
— Ryan Hoover (@rrhoover) October 9, 2014.@ajs people hate on silly, “stupid” apps but imho experimentation is a good thing, especially as the cost ($ and time) to build decreases.
— Ryan Hoover (@rrhoover) October 9, 2014.@rrhoover @ajs people need to stop thinking of apps so narrowly. They’re product. Not just digital. How would we feel if toys didn’t exist?
— Tyler Hayes (@thetylerhayes) October 9, 2014As Tyler pointed out, “toys” have always existed and thankfully technology has empowered more people to translate their ideas into living prototypes more easily than before. Most won’t change the world but sometimes early prototypes turn into something much bigger.
"Why do I need to know what my friends are eating for breakfast?" (read: Twitter)
"What’s the point of ephemeral photos?" (read: Snapchat)
"Who in their right mind would let strangers sleep in their home?" (read: Airbnb)
The Butterfly Effect of Experimentation
Not every app idea should be pursued or turned into a company (here are a few questions to ask yourself, first) but we should encourage “dumb” ideas and experimentation, if nothing else but to inspire new ideas. Hunter Walk best describes this in his defense of the much-criticized Yo:
Once basic technology challenges are commoditized, it frees creative people up to more quickly explore human behaviors and reactions. Again, I believe this is a Good Thing. More experimentation, even those which are fads or failures, help spur ideas in other teams. Maybe there’s a piece of Yo which catalyzes a feature in the next version of WhatsApp or Yammer?
So, rock on Ethan. I look forward to seeing what happens and take care of your thumbs. :)
P.S. Steven Sinofsky on “silly ideas”
P.P.S. Which successful apps can you think of that were once described as dumb? Share in the comments or drop me a note on Twitter (@rrhoover).
P.P.P.S. This.
This week we’re joined by young makers, Ryan Orbuch (Founder, Finish), Gwen Brinsmead (Product, AppMesh), and Ari Weinstein (Co-founder, DeskConnect and Workflow) from a sunny rooftop in San Francisco’s Tenderloin. We chat productivity tools, apps that create beautiful photos, and trends in teenage tech culture. Listen in.
Products mentioned
- Finish - To do lists for procrastinators
- Workflow - Powerful automation for iPhone & iPad
- imoji - Turn selfies or any photo into stickers you can text
- Overcast - The powerful, simple podcast app from Marco Arment
- Hours - Visual time tracking app
- TiddlyWiki - A versatile note-taking web application
- Sketch - Professional digital design for Mac
- Avocado - A new toolbox for interaction designers
- Origami - A free design prototyping toolkit for Quartz Composer
- Facebook Paper - Explore stories from friends and the world around you
- Fyuse - Build amazing spatial photos with your iPhone
- Seene - Share life in 3D
- Matter - Add Stunning 3D Objects To Your Photos
- Fragment - Prismatic Photos
- Hipstamatic - Digital photography never looked so analog
- 1-Hour Photo - A camera app, where you wait an hour to see the photo
- Snapchat - Experience live, real-time events together
- Instagram - Simple way to capture and share the world’s moments on your iPhone
- to.be Camera - The Augmented Reality Camera
- Mindie - 10 second music videos
Subscribe on iTunes or SoundCloud.
Last night, Secret launched Ping, a semi-mysterious app that lives on your lock screen. Immediately, my interest piqued and so did my skepticism. Why were they building a new app? Was Secret not working out?
I wasn’t the only one with questions. On Product Hunt, Danny Espinoza asked:
@davidbyttow so should we read anything into how things are going with Secret with this release or is this just a N-O-R-T-H-like experiment?
I quickly learned that Ping was just a side project, as described in their launch announcement on Medium:
Ping was born out of a weekend hackathon where the goal was an exercise in simplicity. We were fascinated by the idea of an app that could tell you what you need to know, right when you need to know it. Why scavenge for content — it should come to you.
Of course Secret isn’t the first or only experimental startups hacking on side projects:
With by Path - With, a simple app for sharing who you’re hanging out with, was born out of a hackathon.
Tripcast and Daily Kiddo by Cluster - Brenden Mulligan and team recently introduced Tripcast and Daily Kiddo, both photo-based spin-offs of Cluster, targeted for specific use cases.
MyAnalytics by KISSmetrics - The B2B-focused analytics startup built MyAnalytics, a lightweight mobile app that provides a quick glance at one’s site metrics.
Hyperlapse by Instagram - Hyperlapse launched last month, inspired by a pitch-a-thon as Mike Krieger shared on launch day.
Potluck, Friendlibs, and PhoneTag by Branch - Branch launched a conversation platform with nominal traction but not enough to skyrocket their business. Afterward, the team experimented with several ideas, creating Potluck, Friendlibs, and PhoneTag before being acquired by Facebook.
Twitter by Odeo - Twitter is one of the more prominent examples, incubated within the podcast startup, Odeo.
And many others.
An Increasing Trend
Although I don’t have any hard data on this, it appears that more startups are working on side projects, as:
It becomes easier to build - The barrier to entry is much lower than ever before.
Apps become simplified - Dave Morin notes, “apps are the new features,” as startups simplify apps into specific use cases and build app constellations. This further reduces scope of each project and arguably makes it easier to market.
New distribution channels rise - Social platforms like Twitter, Facebook, reddit, Hacker News, Medium, and Product Hunt have also reduced the amount of effort and capital required to get attention for those that build something people want.
Side Project Pros
Of course, these side projects may not turn into multi-million dollar businesses and that’s OK. Startups hacking on the side, can benefit through:
Serendipity - You don’t know what you might discover when building something new.
Learning - Side projects give makers a blank slate to try out new technology, experiment with new design patterns, and market to a different audience without disrupting their existing product. Sometimes these learnings are transferred into their main product.
Excitement - Almost every entrepreneur I know loves to brainstorm new ideas, often reminiscing the early days when they were still figuring out what to build. Side projects can ignite this entrepreneurial spirit and get a team excited.
Marketing - Product launches are press opportunities and in some cases side projects become lead-gen for the main product (e.g. MyAnalytics by KISSmetrics).
Side Project Cons
But side projects can also introduce problems:
Focus - If time is a startup’s most valuable asset, then side projects can be a major distraction, especially if they take off.
Expectations - People generally invest in startups based on the team, market, and idea. Founders should do what they think is best for their company, but they also have a responsibility to use their investors’ money wisely. If a startup drastically changes directions, investors may feel misled and in some cases, those people may not be the right strategic partners for the new initiative.
Signaling - One might question founders’ motivation for building side projects. From an outsiders perspective — especially reporters and investors — side projects may appear like a pivot or a sign that the current product isn’t working.
What do you think? Should startups work on side projects or is this misuse of resources and capital?
Today I received an email from a hopeful Y Combinator applicant, asking for advice. Several others have asked me for guidance applying, so I thought I would share my response here:
Hey, Sam!
*Couple tips for the YC app: *
*- Be honest and real. The partners will know if you’re bullshitting. *
*- Know your metrics. Be able to describe which ones are most important and why. *
*- Describe how your startup can become a billion dollar business, but don’t try to fit a square peg in a round hole. Think big and be pragmatic. *
Hope that helps. :)
P.S. Before you apply, read Mattan Griffel’s essay, The Value of Y Combinator & Accelerators.
In this week’s episode, John and Sam Shahidi, brothers and co-founders of Shots, join PHR from their new office in SOMA, San Francisco. We chat about online bullying, music discovery, and the thoughtful anti-patterns of Shots.
- Shots - Share what you are doing through selfies and photos.
- CyberDust - Take back control of your messaging
- Kindly - Chat with helpful strangers. Private, anonymous, & safe.
- Snapchat - Experience live, real-time events together
- Secret - Share anonymously w/ friends (on Android & avail worldwide)
- YikYak - The anonymous social wall for anything and everything
- Vine - Fun & easy video conversations with friends
- Plug - Lightweight OSX player for Hype Machine
- Product Hunt for iOS - The best new products, every day, in your pocket
P.S. Apologies for the poor audio quality. It’ll get better. :)
Last month I presented Product Hunt to a room full of investors at Demo Day, marking the end of Y Combinator’s Summer 2014 batch. Since then, several people inquired about my YC experience, often asking “Should I apply?”
In almost every case, I encourage them to do so, not because I think they should join YC[1] but instead for the process itself.
I first applied to YC back in 2011. A week later, Kirsty sent us this email:
Rejection sucks. We were bummed. I spent hours on the application but the truth is, it was one of the best uses of my time.
The YC app asks all the right questions. We often get caught up in pixel shifting and group think that we ignore obvious, simple questions like, “How do you know people need what you’re making?”
Whether you get into YC or not, I strongly recommend founders to think about these questions, thoughtfully and without defense. It may inspire new ideas or (rightfully) make you question what you’re building and why.
YC is accepting applications until 8pm PT on October 14. Read the questions and apply here.
[1] Not everyone should start a company and not every idea needs funding. There’s a lot of sex-appeal in joining YC and raising money. Both are strong signals of validation; however, neither are required for success and some businesses and founders are best off bootstrapping. Someday I’ll share more thoughts on this topic.
This week’s PHR comes from the beautiful Bloomberg Beta HQ on the Embarcadero with Roy Bahat (Head of Bloomberg Beta) and Dan Strickland (Operations at Bloomberg Beta). Roy shares his secrets to get to inbox 0, keyboards, we discuss invisible apps, and a preview of what’s to come at Product Hunt.
- Keyboardio - Making keyboards better
- Nudgemail - The easiest way to send yourself reminders
- Zapier + Product Hunt - Create your own Product Hunt notifications
- Jarvis - A personal assistant for $100/mo
- Digit - SMS bot that monitors your bank account & saves you money
- RubCam - Minimal iOS camera for taking pictures by rubbing the screen
- Frontback - Tell stories with photos
- Checkr - An API to Do Background Checks
- SaviOne - A revolutionary delivery robot for the services industry
- Jobr - Tinder for job hunting
- Two Margins - Annotate financial documents (ex. SEC filings) w/ the crowd
Subscribe on iTunes or SoundCloud.
