[Bjorkbat]

I had a bit of a knee jerk cringe reaction to that. I think I understand why after thinking about it.

He’s mostly right. Mostly. Very few SaaS products are designed to be exciting products. They solve problems, maybe even major business problems, but if we’re being honest here they rarely make a meaningful impact in someone’s life. You use them and move on. Most people who have to use these products are paid to endure them until the day is over and they can go home and go back to what they really care about.

So yeah, the company with the resources necessary to drop it’s prices and aggressively sell something that no one really cares about will win. It’s a race to the bottom. If that’s upsetting, too bad.

Unless...

Unless you build something that individuals, not companies, care about.

I think that’s why Slack is doing so well. Most of the add-ons for it have no real legitimate business need. Your company doesn’t need GIPHY, or party parrot emojis. People sure love that sort of thing though. It makes work a little more fun. I think they’re created value in a way that is very hard for competitors to replicate.