
Ask HN: How to do a private beta right? - igammarays
So I&#x27;ve built a SaaS MVP (B2B enterprise). I guess the next step is private beta, because we&#x27;re not ready to open the floodgates to the public. How are private betas usually managed? Would really appreciate anyone&#x27;s experience with this matter. What does the funnel usually look like? Is it ok if we don&#x27;t have automatic credit card subscriptions yet, and I manually invoice our private beta customers? What are the expectations at this stage in terms of customer experience?
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matchmike1313
I have launched some micro-saas products for B2B to give you some background
for me. Here is what I typicality have in place for a private beta: 1)
Intercom for easy communication in-app 2) Google Analytics for general page
tracking 3) Amplitude for tracking granular user actions 4) Rollbar for
tracking errors when users don't report issues (you would be surprised how
often users don't communicate small or even larger issues to you) 5) I make
sure I have some basic self-help tools in the app for betas such as password
resets, etc. That is it for basic tools I've used for SaaS betas. As for the
private beta itself, I always try to schedule some in-person meets, or virtual
screenshares once a week or every few weeks to get a list of issues, wants,
etc. that each user has about the product, I then compile all of that feedback
into Waffle or Trello so I can get a count of which issues are the most
pressing or most requested. As for the funnel, I am not entirely sure what you
mean, but as users give me feedback and as I work through their issues /
updates I try to position the conversation as if we fix X, Y, and Z or add X,
Y, and Z will you pay us (whatever amount) for the subscription. It's good to
get them to commit to the next step even if its 6 months out. Also, yes it is
completely okay if you take invoices vs. having an automated system. They
should understand where you are at since you are not officially launched and
be empathetic to that, if not, they are probably not the best fit for the
beta. The biggest expectation is they are their to provide you with valuable
feedback so you can make this the perfect tool for them an any future customer
that looks like them. Hope that answers all of your questions.

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stympy
We did a private beta when launching Honeybadger.io, and it worked really
well. We reached out to people we knew who would be good customers, had them
go through the same signup flow we planned to use after launch, and had them
enter payment information and get billed (so we could test everything). We
offered these first customers a special, low-priced plan as a thank-you for
helping us test the product.

I think it would be fine to do manual invoicing for this group of customers if
you don't have your credit card processing in place yet. These first customers
should be ones who will understand that they are _testing_ , so not everything
will work. On the flip side, though, you should be prepared to offer them
excellent service, responding quickly to any issues they encounter. These
customers can become a great source for referrals for additional customers if
you treat them well, so treat them well. :)

