Tweets

@ninjaparade awwww yeaaaaah!

@ianlandsman Are you opening Christmas gifts already?

@jacqmtimmons All the best in 2021 as well! Wishing you even more success. 🎉🥳

@stauffermatt Watched this on Friday. 👍

@MrSimonBennett @ChartMogul CONGRATS! 🎉

@christophrumpel I think the Shure MV7 is the best bet now.

https://transistor.fm/how-to-start-a-podcast/

@theDanielJLewis 👀

What are things that rapidly drain *your* emotional battery, but don't seem to affect other people the same way?

@tnorthcutt @TransistorFM LOVE THIS!

@hrishio @wesbos Classic.

Out for a walk, and listening to @adamwathan and @justinvincent chat about distribution on the Techzing podcast. 🤙

https://overcast.fm/+OJ6zeUEI

@mquirion 🤣

(We offered them "free Burger King for a year." I thought it was compelling)

Can't believe Spotify outbid @TransistorFM on this deal.

I thought for sure @jonbuda and I were in the running. 🤣

https://techcrunch.com/2020/12/15/spotify-inks-multi-year-podcasting-deal-with-prince-harry-and-meghan-markle/?guccounter=1

@LenaSesardic It’s the most incredible feeling!

What are the variables that cause a bunch of individuals to collectively show up on your doorstep, wanting to buy your product?

Too often, we take “customers showing up” for granted.

“You build a thing; customers show up.”

But it really is miraculous when it happens (and keeps happening).

It’s amazing that thousands of individuals can have a similar desire, search for a solution, and then all end up using the same product.

There are a myriad of reasons this happens (that go beyond “build a good product”).

To me, the most interesting part about business is when customers show up.

Your passion might create the spark that gets you into business, but it’s customer demand that pulls you forward.

If passion = 100, but demand is = 0, you’ve got no business.

To last a long time, you’ll likely need both: passion and customer demand.

@harriskenny Yes! This is an important step.

I’m here for this... but where is Adobia Fuegos? 🔥 https://twitter.com/pablostanley/status/1338855738651840513

@ianlandsman Ironically, with Transistor, it’s the enterprise customers that pursue us the most!

They’re the ones sending multiple emails, asking me to “please sign the agreement,” and pushing the process forward.

RT @mijustin: In my experience, it's not worth chasing prospects who aren't already making an effort.

You want self-motivated customers: f…

Here’s the original thread (for context). https://twitter.com/mijustin/status/1338535435669159937

Sometimes, you get lucky.

You build something because you want it, and when you release it, it turns out other people want it to.

(This is especially true for tech products where the market is other tech folks who are similar to you)

Before you build a product, you should be curious:

“How many people might want this if I built it?”

And you can look for evidence for how much demand there might be.

You don’t just want to build something in your basement, and hope on a prayer that folks will want it.

@Aylon133 @jasonfried When has this happened, in practice?

@DanielZarick Yup. That’s pretty much what we concluded.

@justinvincent This is just the appetizer, not the full meal. 👍

@justinvincent Just wait until you listen to the whole thing. 😉

After debating on Twitter a bit, @jasonfried and I did a Skype call and talked about market demand and margins for bootstrappers.

Lots of good back and forth. 😉

I'll publish the whole interview on @buildyoursaas next week:

https://saas.transistor.fm/subscribe

@earthlingworks WOW 😮

@atalduwaisan When you have tons of funding or a massive following, you can sometimes influence customer demand.

ie. Kanye West can create demand for Yeezy.

However, even if you have influence, it often doesn't work.

ie. Casey Neitat and Beme.

@robwalling @jonhainstock @tinyseedfund Agreed.

But at a base level: no demand = no business.

At least with competitor pain you’re starting from a place where the demand exists.

(You’ve just got to be the right founder to capture it)

@G_Langenderfer 💯

@G_Langenderfer It's a piece of it.

For me, I needed:

- founder/market fit
- founder/product fit
- founder/company fit

But, you also need a good market, and a product that has traction in that market. 😉

https://justinjackson.ca/want

@harriskenny @heyhey The academic definition is "the total quantity demanded across all consumers in a market for a given good."

For me, "a market" is the sum of these factors:

- Number of potential customers
- How much they spend
- The frequency at which they buy
- Their willingness to pay

@brandonklotz 💯

@Mqsley wait. are you reading my tweet drafts? 😜

If entrepreneurs could consistently and reliably "create demand" they would!

But it just doesn't happen.

What entrepreneurs *DO* have is choice.

We get to choose which "pockets of pent-up demand" we target. We get to choose which market we build for.

Realtors don't create the demand for houses; homebuyers do.

Many realtors thought business would suffer during the pandemic, but instead, it went up!

A number of external and internal factors came together and created a seller's market. Prices increased.

In most cases, "market demand" isn't created by the entrepreneur.

It's already there. Customers are already feeling the need.

Entrepreneurs are tapping into that potential. We're responding to demonstrated demand.

@harriskenny @heyhey I don't think @heyhey created demand. They tapped into demand that was already there.

When they wrote "You started getting stuff you didn’t want from people you didn’t know. You lost control over who could reach you," they're appealing to a paint point *were* feeling.

@jonhainstock @robwalling Targeting "customer pain" (the way you've described it) is difficult to get right.

Mostly because it's hard to know what the potential market for that thing is.

In many cases, founders are choosing pain-points that don't have enough demand.

@mattragland @TransistorFM YESSS! Thanks so much Matt.

We’re happy to have you! 🙌

If potential customers aren't already in motion (at some scale), then it's probably not a market worth pursuing for bootstrappers.

@harriskenny I'm subscribing to the "movement of consumers" concept.

If there's no movement, at some scale, then it's likely not a market worth pursuing for bootstrappers.

@Aylon133 @jasonfried If you're in the CRM market, you're in the CRM market (and are beholden to the characteristics of that market).

You might appeal to a certain customer segment within a category, but the underlying factors are largely the same for all providers in the market.

@jasonfried But you’re choosing the product category you’re in.

If you choose the diamond market, you accept all of the characteristics of that market.

The shape of demand in Project Management software is different than the demand for banjos.

We, as founders, control “what biz we’re in.”

@jasonfried You also control which market you target.

It’s (arguably) the most important decision you make.

Some markets are better than others (have more potential buyers, frequently buy products, are easier to reach and serve, have better distribution channels).

Demand isn’t just a function of “do people want this?” but also “how many people want this?” and “how much will they pay?”

@tylertringas Agreed. Seeing too many folks tackle “small” opportunities with limited potential.

@podcastharry Wait until you see what @TransistorFM is cooking...

@levidxyz I was just going to mention that. 😉

Such a good way to phrase it. 👍

Remember when you were happy with Hipchat, but still wanted to switch to Slack because “everyone on Twitter” was using it?

“Everyone’s doing it” is a powerful motivator for consumer behavior.

The bandwagon effect also has an element of FOMO:

The more people you see buying new M1 Macs, the more you want one.

When you see more folks using Figma, you’ll increasingly want to switch (even if you’re happy with Sketch).

This is also known as the “bandwagon effect:” “when people's preference for a commodity increases as the number of people buying it increases.”

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bandwagon_effect

Another example: Tesla stock.

Their increase in stock price isn’t based on fundamentals (Tesla’s business isn’t getting better).

It’s just more people are seeing other people buy the stock and therefore want that same stock.

(This behavior seems built-in to human DNA)

One of the most interesting characteristics of market demand is “people want things more when other people show demand for that thing.”

When folks see more people buying a thing it ignites an increased desire for them to also buy that thing.

(The “Tickle Me Elmo effect”)

@theandreboso @mubashariqbal @adamwathan Yeah. I’m pretty bearish on a lot of the DTC trends.

They seem to be impulse oriented (and don’t lead to repeatable sales for the brand).

“Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.”

@theandreboso @mubashariqbal @adamwathan Not sustainably over the long haul though.

A company can’t really reach lasting scale using that technique.

@adamwathan @mubashariqbal I think it gets more interesting when you recognize that certain markets have better conditions than others.

Some markets are bigger, easier to reach, have a greater ability to pay, and have desires that we (as founders) might be better at fulfilling.

@mubashariqbal @adamwathan See, this is where I disagree.

I think the phenomenon Adam’s describing has its foundation in Demand:

People first want a thing, and then seek it out. And, they often discover the solution that has the best Distribution.

Distribution only works if people want what you have.

@adamwathan I guess we should ask Jeffrey Katzenberg about that. 😂

I’m also realizing (more and more) that Demand and Distribution have a reciprocal relationship.

More Demand often results in new pathways for Distribution to occur and get amplified.

(More people talking, referring, etc)

@adamwathan What made me think of this was Mubs’ point about Quibi: great distribution, but people didn’t want it.

So even though it was easy to find, it failed.

You’re right: Distribution is an incredible lever, but it seems it needs to be paired with Demand.

https://twitter.com/mubashariqbal/status/1338201838869491716?s=20

@mubashariqbal You’re right!

Revising this more here: https://twitter.com/mijustin/status/1338220353135382529

@adamwathan Thinking about this some more:

You really need both Customer Demand and Distribution.

When people want something, they’ll seek it out. The more channels you have to reach them, the better.

But demand also contributes to distribution. Ex: searches & clicks affects search algo.

RT @earthlingworks: For SaaS, it’s not personal brand (audience building) but distribution. Matters a lot.

I’ve bought two direct competit…

@mubashariqbal Except Quibi wasn’t a distribution problem.

@adamwathan Lol.

RT @mijustin: Good products don't always win. Products with *distribution* win.

What are the best podcast recommendation services?

I’d say:

1. @podysseyapp (“Fans also like,” “Related playlists,” “More from...”)

2. @ApplePodcasts (“More from...,” “You might also like”)

The podcast search engine, @ListenNotes, provides some recommendations.

These are “ok,” but they seem to be just pulling shows from the True Crime category.

(Unfinished is often placed in the True Crime category, but feels different than most True Crime)

It looks like @Castbox_fm also gives a few recommendations, but these suggestions don’t feel particularly relevant to the podcast I just heard.

The “IMDB for podcasts” is @Podchaser.

They have a “similar podcasts” section, but many of these recommendations don’t feel particularly related to Unfinished.

One of my favorite places to discover new narrative podcasts is @podysseyapp.

When I scroll down, I get some solid recommendations:

- “fans also like”
- “featured in playlists”
- “more from Witness Docs”

Nice. 👍

@joshuaanderton Google has that feature?

What about Google Podcasts?

Nope. No recommendations for “what to listen to next.”

For all the hype that Spotify gets as a podcast player... their recommendations are nil?

They highlight podcast trailers in the feed, but that’s it.

Let’s head over to @ApplePodcasts next.

If you scroll down, they actually provide two “suggested” reels:

- “more from Witness Docs”
- “you might also like”

There’s a bunch of shows here that look interesting to me here.

These recommendations feel pretty solid. 👍

I listen in @OvercastFM.

Overcast is an awesome podcast app, but they don’t really provide recommendations.

The closest thing I get is a trailer for another podcast that @witnessdocs put in the feed.

I just finished @witnessdocs’ excellent “Unfinished: Short Creek” podcast series.

Often, after listening to a great series like this, my question is: “how can I find more shows like this?”

🤔 That’s a good question. Let’s look at the current state of podcast recommendations. 👉

@myfriendjanine We met at @xoxo in 2014.

Story here: https://saas.transistor.fm/episodes/finding-a-cofounder-you-want-to-work-with

@R2Rsquared @ProfJAParker 👋 greenhorn here.

I’m confused: “borrowing a lot is not a problem” but “pretending there is no borrowing isn’t wise.”

I don’t understand: who is pretending there is no borrowing?

@mattlehrer @StephanieKelton Ordered it. Just need to read it!

Where does money come from?

Good thread 👉 https://twitter.com/RichardJMurphy/status/1337739423455338496

Really important message from @zenfounder:

“Let’s not be surprised. We are all vulnerable to isolation, loneliness, and self-destruction.”

https://overcast.fm/+ELlQ_a6zY

@theothercole @joinClubhouse Beauty! Followed.

Trying to give @joinClubhouse a good go.

Anyone here on there?

I’m “mijustin” on there too. Let’s connect! 👋

@venikunche Wow! Looks awesome!

What happened to Paul Jarvis?

@JackEllis and Paul tell all in this podcast:

https://overcast.fm/+VbWDmfu3M

@digitaltrouble In a sense, most live chat apps already do this.

Thanks so much for choosing Transistor. It means a lot to me! ❤️ https://twitter.com/matthewhirschey/status/1337735347724234757

@alanklement Yes! @podia is great! 👍

@valsopi There are a ton, trust me. 😅

@leenyburger Addictive?

@jamesewentech @IndieHackers @TransistorFM Yup! https://www.getrewardful.com/?via=justin

@Mqsley @IndieHackers @TransistorFM In most cases, they found us!

http://transistor.fm/affiliates

Christmas shopping is stressful. 😬

I need a @ratiovernon cookie and drink. 🍪☕