

Ask YC: Is it never too early to invite press coverage for a startup? - shafqat

We're launching our private alpha next week, and I've been in touch with journalists and bloggers for a while now. Of course, everyone wants 'an early look', but is it ever too early for press? We believe in releasing early and releasing often, but am worried about showing a site that's too raw to a prominent blogger/journalist. First impressions count for a lot. What were your experiences like?
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nloadholtes
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daikatana>

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mechanical_fish
Again with the Wil Shipley:

"Don’t announce until it can be downloaded. Don’t let it be downloaded until
it can be bought."

His argument is actually a bit more subtle than that, and since you're in a
similar position I'd recommend listening to his actual C[4] presentation
instead of just this isolated quote.

But it boils down to: Yes, you can get the PR out of sync with the product.
Yes, it can cost you sales. Yes, it can even tank your company. Go google
"Joel Spolsky Marimba Phenomenon":
<http://www.joelonsoftware.com/items/2005/11/02.html>

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staunch
If you can deliver a demo and pitch that gets people excited you're probably
in good enough shape for the press. Try it out on some non-press people first.
Make sure you get honest feedback and have good answers to the tough
questions.

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dkokelley
Press releases are best used when you have something ready for the masses to
use. If what you have is ready for its beta then I would go ahead and get
journalists involved, but if it's not ready for the average user, then I would
hold off.

Of course if you can use the press to build public anticipation then it would
be worth it. Just be careful not to let anything break.

