Ask HN: Non-specific negative feedback on product ideas.

4 points by sithu 12 years ago | 5 comments

I'm in the process of building a product for myself and my colleagues. Today I met with someone who wasn't excited about it. The feedback was non-specific, more like 'meh'. Comments like "I don't see myself using something like this." or "I'm busy and wouldn't have time for this."

This really surprised me, because previous feedback from several people had been very positive. I talked to the guy more, but couldn't pin down any particular reason- he just wasn't interested.

This bothers me. What do you guys do with this kind of feedback? I don't think the other people were just being nice, but of course I don't know for sure.

jeffmould 12 years ago |

Situations like this used to bother me greatly. In fact there have been several times in my life where I dumped ideas simply because someone told me it was a bad idea, only to watch that idea turn into a million dollar opportunity a year later with someone else. Over time I have learned that not everyone is going to like every idea or product. You could have the greatest product in the world and there will always be detractors who have no interest or a bad opinion. Unless every body you talk to has the same reaction I would not worry about the few who could care less.

Even Henry Ford had people who thought cars were a crazy idea and they would never use them. Now look where we are with vehicles. In short, don't worry about it.

subdane 12 years ago |

Maybe try Lean methodology? Make sure you're clear on the problem you're solving and who you're solving it for. Then come up with a hypothesis and ask specific questions validate or invalidate the hypothesis. https://www.leanstartupmachine.com/validationboard/

anthony_franco 12 years ago |

Make sure to interview as many people as possible to to ensure that the consensus is generally positive. But expecting 100% approval is a pipe dream.

001sky 12 years ago |

Why did you meet with this person? Is he a manager/peer or an actual part of your target market? Is your peer-group or managers your target market? Political dynamics can complicate product development. The "not invented here syndrome" is a classic.

People may not want to show the product respect or attention for selfish motives.

Alternatively, consider the 10x better benchmark. Many people will face legitimate costs to switching their routine/existing solutions. So, for a 10% better product, the ROI is still negative for them. This is a more legitimate and yet still common form of 'resistance' that is expressed as general apathy in many contexts. Particularly in enterprise or big-co outside customers.

To try to evaluate if it is the former or the latter, consider approaching a mix of people for feedback. Most importantly, evaluate their credentials and motives as part of your process.

sithu 12 years ago | |

Very helpful- thank you. I'm ok with actionable negative feedback, but apathy I don't know how to interpret. This person is a peer- and the target users will be my peers. I've talked to several peers (some friends, and others more like co-workers). The product is more social than for business, but I do keep in mind that people have to get some return/value for time spent though.