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Vishu Bheda
ย โขย
Medialย โขย 2m
Coinbase founder shares the Y Combinator advice that helped Coinbase find product/market fit The first version of any product rarely works, and thatโs exactly what happened with Coinbase. When Brian Armstrong, the founder, launched Coinbase, it was just a simple hosted Bitcoin wallet. He posted it on Reddit, and while a few people signed up, no one stuck around. Instead of getting discouraged, Brian followed a key piece of advice from Y Combinator: โIn the early stages, focus on two thingsโtalking to your customers and improving your product based on their feedback.โ He emailed 10 users who had signed up and asked for feedback through quick phone calls. One user said they liked the wallet but didnโt have any Bitcoin to use with it. That sparked an idea. Brian asked the user, โIf there was an easy way to buy Bitcoin within the app, would you use it?โ The answer was yes. So Brian spent the next few months building a โbuy Bitcoinโ button. This meant securing bank partnerships and legal licensesโa lot of work, but it was worth it. As soon as they launched the feature, Coinbase started growing organically every day without any marketing. Thatโs when Brian knew they had hit product/market fit. The lesson? Keep it simple: talk to users, listen to their needs, and iterate quickly. Thatโs how great products are built. Follow me for more valuable startup insights from the world's best founders!
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