Thread by @hrishiptweets

Marketing is key to your product's success. However, you must always aim to build a great product.

I've been writing software & building products for 10+ years. For past 5 years, I've done it for my own startup, growing to $3million+ revenue.

Here are my top 27 product tips 🧵

27 tips split across 4 sections:
1) Product Mindset (1-6)
2) Product Building (7-16)
3) Competition (17-19)
4) Product Management (20-27)

Meanwhile, if you'd like to check out my startup:
flexiple.com

Getting people to know about your product is the toughest part when building your product.

(1/27)

Build an audience before you build a product.

(2/27)

You don't need to quit your job for building your audience. You can easily do this on the side.

(3/27)

Want to build an audience?
- Start a blog or newsletter
- Write regularly on social media
- Build a following on online communities

(4/27)

Don't build unless it is absolutely essential to do so.

(5/27)

Want build a marketplace?
- Use simple forms e.g. @typeform
- Store data in @airtable
- Manually get your MVP running

You don't need a product yet.

(6/27)

Decide exactly what you want to build and build only that's most essential.

Make a list of features you want to see in your product V1. Strike out features that aren't a blocker.

(7/27)

Fast, good or cheap - At any point, you can only get 2 out of these 3 right.

A good quality product made quickly won't be cheap OR A cheap product made ASAP won't have great quality.

(8/27)

Never reinvent the wheel.

Existing solutions are better on almost every aspect - fast, robust & cheap (lifetime value).

(9/27)

Use no-code tools if you don't need customisations.

For example, you should never feel the need to build a marketing page from scratch. Use a no-code solution instead.

(10/27)

Learn how websites work. Better, learn to code — basics are enough.

This is applicable even if you're building a no-code solution or outsourcing development.

(11/27)

Before building any feature, double check if there's an existing library, plugin or an entire product. Again, never reinvent the wheel.

(12/27)

When building a product, always think of building an MVP first.
- Launch a version of the product
- Get feedback
- Iterate & build on top of it

(13/27)

When building a feature (in an existing product), again think of building an MVP (or MVF) first.
- Launch a version of the feature
- Get feedback
- Iterate & build on top of it

(14/27)

First make it work, then make it beautiful.

Make something functional & then focus on the aesthetics. You probably don't need a designer for building your MVP.

(15/27)

Minimise the number of variables to manage.

For example, use an out-of-the-box hosting provider like Heroku (@heroku) or Netlify (@Netlify) vs. AWS wherever possible.

(16/27)

Watch your competitors.

It's the easiest way to learn & get free validation.

(17/27)

Don't obsess with your competition. Else you will end up being a clone.

(18/27)

Ideas don't have a copyright.

If you see your competitor come up with a great idea, steal & execute it in your own way.

(19/27)

Don't try to solve for all problems at once.

Figure the most critical ones & solve for them first.

Iterate and solve for the rest in later versions.

(20/27)

Software doesn't last forever.

When you build something from scratch, don't expect it to run magically forever.

Version upgrades, feature deprecation & other maintenance issues are bound to come up.

(21/27)

Always have a Todo list for features. Better, have a roadmap.

When you strike off features from a version of a product, don't just throw them away. Document it for later.

(22/27)

Focus on speed of execution, not perfection.

You're destroying value & money when you delay decisions & work.

(23/27)

Trust data & user feedback, not just your intuition.

(24/27)

Try all possible channels for user acquisition & marketing.

You can't be sure what channel works unless you try.

(25/27)

Don't sell. Solve your customers' problems and make money in the process.

(26/27)

Make your customers pay for the value you provide them, not for your inefficiencies.

(27/27)

I regularly share content around products, marketing & startups, so consider:
1) Retweeting the first tweet
2) Following me :)

https://twitter.com/hrishiptweets/status/1453225343838564371?s=20