Ask HN: How would you efficiently confirm who your actual target customer is?

4 points by Frajedo 4 years ago | 2 comments

Hello HN!

I have built GetMyMFA (https://get.mymfa.io), a simple web application allowing individuals and businesses to simply rent and receive SMS Multi-Factor Authentication Codes.

This website has been built after our business had the need to test our mobile and web applications with multi-factor authentication through multiple users (thanks Quality Assurance team!).

Being a reader of HN and multiple entrepreneurship communities, I felt that building this product might be worth the effort as it is likely that other businesses have the same problematics as ours!

I am having a hard time defining a strategy to efficiently approach my target customers (small businesses & iOS Development companies). Currently, I am cold-messaging via LinkedIn CTOs of these companies but the approach doesn't feel very efficient.

This leaves me wondering the following two things:

1. Am I getting in touch with the actual target customers? What do you think would be the most efficient way to quickly validate or refute my hypothesis? 2. How would you efficiently contact startups and small businesses developing iOS applications and/or building their QA team?

Thanks a lot in advance

bradknowles 4 years ago |

Don’t do 2FA over SMS. Just don’t. That’s a big bag of hurt that is just begging for someone to stand up and come looking for it.

Once you eliminate that, what part is left of your business model?

Frajedo 4 years ago | |

I fully agree with you on the theoretical reasons why SMS-based MFA is bad and should stop being used at some point.

In the meantime, try explaining a random user how to setup and use a TOTP for your application, I wish you good luck.

Once every business is able to enable TOTP-based MFA for their applications, it'll be a great day for cyber and my side project will cease existing ¯\_(ツ)_/¯.