Looking through my inbox from when we first started Cloudflare. Struck by our obsession over 1) UI design + sign up process, 2) Communication style with beta customers, 3) Constant email + Skype calls with customers, 4) the number of external people we talked to regularly
1) For the signup process, to say we sweated the details would be an understatement. We were maniacal about getting every pixel right. It was painful during the process but the end result served us well for years
2) We had warmth and clarity to our email communication. We signed some of our early emails to customers from the entire founding team (there were 8 of us when we launched).
3) @eastdakota and I talked to A LOT of our beta customers over email and Skype. We also shared new projects early. “Here is the latest reporting dashboard. Would love your initial thoughts” Some customers were happy + others weren’t. By engaging, we built better relationships
4) It really does take a village to build a company - both inside and out. So many employees, vendors, partners, investors, advisors, friends, family and champions flooded our inboxes daily.
Cloudflare is turning 8 years old in two weeks. I love using this time of the year to reflect on everything we have done. I am very proud of our team and appreciate our customers who choose Cloudflare. I also get fired up for everything we have left to do.
