

Ask HN: We launched our startup (GroupieGuide) today. What do you think? - fixie

We requested feedback on HN when we first launched our private alpha.  We launched publicly today with a new interactive theme designer, group subscription with integrated e-mail, and a bunch of usability fixes. What do you think?
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babyshake
First of all, the picture on the homepage is hilarious.

But I would need to be convinced why I should use these groups instead of
Facebook Groups, when my friends and I are already all on Facebook.

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fixie
Good point, we probably need to emphasize this a bit more. We are trying to
convince people that GroupieGuide offers groups a fully-functional customized
website that they can call their own. On Facebook, Meetup, Google/Yahoo
Groups, groups aren't able to express themselves with their own design and
branding. GroupieGuide only has a single link back at the bottom of the group
page.

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jlees
Does a book club or happy hour group need, or want, custom design and
branding?

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joevandyk
Need? No. Want? Maybe.

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monological
<http://groupieguide.com/>

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JimmyL
I clicked on the five thumbnails located below the main image with the
expectation that something would happen - maybe a larger image of whatever
it's a thumbnail of, or some more description of what _integrate email_ , for
example, means.

Likewise with the six sample uses under _create a website to_ \- if _recruit
readers for a book club_ is listed as a suggested use, and it's visually
presented as a button-shaped thing, I expect to be able to click on it and see
a demo (either live example site or screenshot) of what it would look like if
I chose to use your site for that purpose.

Having a GetSatisfaction link on individual group pages is unclear - is the
user being invited to give feedback on the individual page, the group, or the
service in general.

When editing a group's page, have some easy way to see what the thing will
look like when viewed by a normal, non-logged in user - the same idea as
Facebook's feature to see what your profile looks like when viewed by someone
else.

Also, maybe some more explaining what the service is. Until I got to the
screen below the fold, I thought the site would be a way for a band's groupies
to organize themselves, or for the best strategies to become a groupie.

~~~
joevandyk
Good point, we will be making adjustments to the front page shortly.

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fortes
Quick feedback / pet peeve: You've done a great job of making it easy and
quick to see how to create a group, but I'm curious about what the groups look
like & do. Screenshots or a link to an existing group would do just fine.

~~~
fixie
Good point, here are some groups:

<http://thegroupies.groupieguide.com/> <http://fixie.groupieguide.com/>
<http://cohitre.groupieguide.com/> <http://stptraining.groupieguide.com/>

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cool-RR
And I thought it would be a guide on getting groupies.

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physcab
The site is very well designed and put together. I was pretty confused by the
landing page though. I should be able to understand your product in 5 seconds
and that didn't exactly happen.

Also I'm curious to know what problem this solves or how much demand is really
out there for this product. Need a site? Google Sites does the job well. Need
a discussion group? Facebook Groups has that covered. Need to collaborate?
Google Docs, Google Calendar, E-mail, all fit the bill fine.

If you're main pull is to provide custom design/branding, then why are users
held to the GroupieGuide domain? Doesn't it defeat the purpose?

I interact with a research group on a day to day basis, but I simply did not
see enough value for me to create a presence on your site. Maybe I missed the
point--in which case you need to make it more clear why your product is not
for me.

~~~
carlosrr
I think you hit the nail right in the head when you mention all these
different services. There are many products out there that expand our
features, however using and mashing these products together ends up with a
complicated and difficult to setup service.

We picked features that are useful for non-techies and made them accessible
through a single interface.

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suhail
Some might ask how is this different from Ning.com or Tangler.com?

What are you going to say? How are you going to win? How will you overcome the
customer lock in at established competitors?

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carlosrr
We think that there are many users that want a web page for their group but
don't want to interact online. GroupieGuide is a gets out of the way solution
where most of the interaction can be done over e-mail. Visitors don't need to
navigate to get the information that they need.

Both ning and tangler focus on building online social interactions through the
website. We are trying to cater to the users that have been ignored by social
networks.

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alexitosrv
I really like the visual design of the whole thing. Good job!

It looks very polished and professionally designed.

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tonyd138
How does this make money? You were compared to Ning.com or Tangler.com, asked
how will you get their customers. I think calling them customers is a stretch,
none of them make money.

~~~
fixie
Currently we don't make any money :) We have some thoughts on how to monetize
it in the future, but at this point we are just focusing on building an
awesome application that people would actually find useful.

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vaksel
The background pic is a little confusing to me

