Building Mediocre Product Experience

Like many of us who’ve worked for others, I’ve always dreamed of building my own project. I gave it a shot, but it didn’t pan out… Unless…

That one awesome idea is properly validated

Back then, I had this idea that I thought was incredible: building a website where users could insert thumbnails into their videos before uploading them to TikTok.

Your idea could be fantastic, the kind of clever idea you’ve always dreamed of. However, that doesn’t automatically guarantee the desired outcome. The idea itself isn’t inherently valuable; its implementation is what truly matters. Many factors contribute to achieving the desired result. Without dedication, hard work, luck, and effective marketing, everything can fall apart.

Don’t hesitate to reach out to people and discuss your idea. Don’t worry about someone stealing your idea; it’s like fearing someone will discover Medium’s brilliance and keep it a secret. Many people have been in your shoes and are eager to offer validation, suggestions, and advice on your MVP.

I regret not realizing this earlier. I jumped straight into implementation, and after a month of little progress, my motivation waned. When I finally sought feedback, I learned that the idea wasn’t as strong as I thought. However, I also received valuable suggestions, such as allowing users to insert multiple video thumbnails at once.

Despite the negative feedback, I pressed on with the implementation. After all, I couldn’t afford to waste a month. Looking back, I should have spent a week validating the idea more thoroughly instead of relying on input from just around three people and two Reddit posts.

You have someone to back you up

As the old saying goes, ‘If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.’ My strength lies in backend development, so I was able to quickly design and build the system architecture. However, I struggled with the UI and frontend components.

You should find someone who is interested in your idea and ask them to join you. Not only will this accelerate the project, but it will also bring diverse perspectives to the table.

At the time, I couldn’t find anyone to join me, so I went solo. This not only extended the project timeline to over two months but also resulted in a subpar UX/UI. If I could do it again, I’d team up with a UI designer and a frontend developer to complete the project in two to three weeks.

MVP is first priority

I wasn’t familiar with the concept of an MVP back then, which led to a massive backlog of unnecessary features that were released all at once. Instead, I should have focused on a minimal viable product with just enough features and a basic UI that could be iterated upon over time. Releasing the entire project at once prevented me from getting valuable feedback that could have helped me improve the product gradually.

Money shouldn’t be your first prioritize, but you should find a pricing strategy

If you prioritize money over quality, you’ll end up with a subpar product. You’ll rush to finish it and charge users for unnecessary features. Instead, you should develop a sound pricing strategy that generates revenue. While I didn’t prioritize money, I also failed to create a pricing strategy. Later, I implemented a poorly thought-out strategy that charged users only for processing multiple videos at once. This late and ineffective strategy doomed the project, as it failed to generate any income. As a last-ditch effort, I tried Google AdSense, but it was unsuccessful due to low user traffic.

You find a way to promote your product

I was so focused on the project’s success and completion that I neglected proper promotion. A few Reddit and IndieHacker posts weren’t enough to attract a significant user base. After three months, the project had only a handful of users and ultimately failed.

You don’t give up

Even though the project failed, I learned valuable lessons. The journey, not the destination, is what truly matters. This experience highlighted areas where I can improve for future projects. Most importantly, don’t let failure discourage you from trying again.