Ask HN: Where did you get your best product feedback during development?

[davebaines]

Our startup Lucolo (http://www.lucolo.com) is creating a message exchange service for enterprise environments. It's an alternative to email and, as being such, we're trying trying to determine the best features to build and market for our launch but we'd love more feedback from our prospective users to help us hone in on this market and how they'd use Lucolo. We've created a Google form (http://goo.gl/forms/DbDhxD81rB) and have been sending it out to legal, government, and financial organizations via email (we've found contact titles and emails through sites like http://www.lead411.com) but I'm curious to hear what other folks have done to engage with prospective user groups to garner feedback to validate product-market fit.

Thanks in advance and I can't wait to hear the responses!

[andersthue]

I started December 1'st 2014 building what was then known as SpaceTimeHQ, a funnier way to do time tracking.

We started building based on our own needs and ideas, but luckily I did some things that helped me realize that I know nothing about building something people actually wants to pay for.

Before I even started the project I build an accountability email list with around 20 people i respect - I email them every 3-4 week about my progress and what I will do next. The feedback from this email/these guys helped me steer in the right direction.

After I got steered in the right direction I (quickly) read the Lean Startup book by Eric Ries and Immediately stopped building and started booking demo's (on paper!)

These demos/talks made me pivot into building an app that helps support a new way for makers and managers to work together, called the TimeBlock method (http://timeblock.com/), this method works fine without the app. so people understood and reacted to my paper demo (some even started using the method and agreed to pay for access to me until the app is ready)

So, a long story short - I got my best feedback from talking to potential customers - and the funny thing is that I discovered that they actually loves that!

[LanceHaynie]

I try to find end users in my target market and somehow get them to use it during the process. It's a tough sell, but you can always find someone who is fed up enough to try anything new.

On the project I am currently working on, we are building software for real estate agents. I actually brought in the owner of a small firm (10 agents) as a co-founder in exchange for him forcing his team to use the application. This ended up working very well, we got instant feedback and were able to update the software generally same day. I hold regular meetings with the team, two or three times weekly, to make sure they have no roadblocks in doing their job. They are happy because we are molding the software as we go to specific needs, and we are happy because we are able to find out instantly what works and what doesnt.

We also brought in another team once we felt it was at least close to beta status. We offered them free usage of the application through public release, and then six months free after release.

[joshmlewis]

What made you decide to build what you are building? Have you talked to any end users in your target market?

[davebaines]

We've spoken to many folks in the legal field and they love the idea of having a messaging platform that puts all conversation components in a timeline so docs, comments, etc stay easily readable. We think that those pain points exist in other verticals (who want a email-like UX but with an updated feature set) so we're trying to scope that out with this round of feedback.