From Burbn to Instagram
A product market fit lesson
80 users.
That’s how many users Burbn had at its peak.
Even though the app had close to 100 true fans, the one telltale sign that Burbn was not on track to product market fit was minuscule conversion.
For users, the app was far too complicated and did too much.
With Instagram, 25,000 users showed up the first day.
So what changed?
First, Systrom recognized that Burbn was not on track to product market fit and he wasn’t about to wait around for “hockey stick growth.”
So he started to focus on what users were doing on Burbn.
At the time, the app featured all kinds of features like giving users the ability to check into locations, earn points for hanging out with friends, and so on.
Nobody used those features.
They only used one: photo-sharing.
One user was a guy from Hawaii who shared cool photos of volcanos.
So Systrom decided to fundamentally change what Burbn was about.
He changed the app to focus on photo-sharing, building in filters, the ability to share photos, and likes and comments.
He focused on what users were already doing a lot of on the app.
Lesson
Product market fit is unmistakable.
It’s when users are flocking to your product and using it in an explosive and destructive way.
It’s when you can’t keep up with user demand.
There’s no one specific way to get to product market fit.
One way is to observe how your users are using your product. What’s one thing they’re doing a lot of and repetitively so?
Focus on that one thing and you may then find yourself on the path to product market fit.
Do not wait around for hockey stick growth. Change something fundamental about your product, ideally to focus on something that your users already do a lot of using your product, and test that change on users.
