05/17/2009

Launch, Listen, Learn - Don't Let Perfection Stand In The Way of Success

Over the years I have heard many variations of Voltaire's observation "The perfect is the enemy of the good." In my opinion, this concept is responsible for many failed online initiatives.

Let me explain.

When an entrepreneur or small business decides they are going to launch a new website/update a current one, the process often occurs in a vacuum. Mockups and demo links are shared with close friends, co-workers and even family members as a way to determine if your web designer is "on the right track."  

Sure as the sun will rise, if you ask for someones opinion, you will get it. The problem with this scenario is that more often than not, these groups do not accurately represent your target audience. As a result, you will spend a lot of time and money tweaking buttons, text, navigation and other elements that will really have very little impact on the success of your website.

It is nearly impossible to guarantee that a new or upgraded website will be 100% perfect when it launches. Only after launch, can you expect to get the feedback and/or criticisms that will help you improve the usability of your site.

Tip #1 - Make sure your website and social media efforts actively encourage feedback. Ex. Adding a suggestion form field on your homepage or posting a direct request for feedback on Twitter. 

When you do start to receive feedback, it is important that you qualify the source and carefully consider these suggestions before implementing any changes. Remember, no matter what changes you make to your site, you are not going to make everyone happy.

Tip #2 - Ask yourself if a change you are considering will actually improve the clarity of your brands message and overall site usability experience. Obsessing over the color of a button or size/style of a font could be a huge waste of time when more important things need to be changed (I am guilty of this)

The first iteration of openofficespace.com was launched after only about 4 weeks. Since our launch, we have received some very good feedback/criticism that we hope will elevate us from a very good idea, to an extremely valuable service for spaceholders, small businesses and entrepreneurs. We hope to launch iteration two in the next few weeks.

We acknowledge there is a delicate balance between launching something that is simply not ready vs. something that is good enough to generate quality feedback without losing the respect of your audience.

Assuming that your site is "good enough" - launching, listening and learning from your target audience can help you build traction on search engines while potentially preserving your first mover advantage.  Waiting to launch until your site is perfect is a great way to guarantee failure...only your audience will know the answer to that.


     


May 17, 2009 7:17:25 AM | affordable office space, cheap office rent, Co-Working Space, commercial office space, commercial property for rent, commerical real estate, Coworking Space, find office space, flexible office space, friendly sublease, furnished office space, industrial space for lease, inexpensive office for rent, month to month office space, office leasing, office space for rent, rent office space, renting a cubicle, renting a desk, renting an office, renting an office space, retail space for rent, share office space, shared office space, short term office space, sublease office space, sublet office space, temporary office space, term office space, warehouse space

2 Comments

I agree wholeheartedly with your concept of launch early and iterate. I took about 6 weeks to launch my website (Feb 6) and just finished our first set of updates, with a long list of updates that will keep coming. It's the only way to go.
It seems so many people still (yes, in 2009) think of the web like a brochure that will used for years: you got to get it absolutely 100% perfect the first time. But it's just not true. Instead of 4 or 6 weeks, it will take 4 or 6 months if you do it that way... or even 2 years, which is how long most large corporations take to build a website.

Posted by: Mike Sullivan | 05/22/2009 at 05:37 PM

Thanks for the comment Mike! I am looking forward to following your site as you launch your new upgrades.

Posted by: Dave Gise | 05/24/2009 at 06:57 AM

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