

Rate My Startup: wusoup.com - ptaoussanis
http://www.wusoup.com

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ptaoussanis
Hi guys,

I'm in the process of launching an early prototype version of a
Clojure/MongoDB web application I'm working on called Wusoup (www.wusoup.com).

Basically the thing functions as a people-matching and messaging service for
dating/friendship/chatting purposes.

The single biggest difference between Wusoup and traditional dating sites (the
closest comparison), is that matching is done in a learning fashion by
observing user interactions over time.

I'm using cluster analysis to produce a metric space over the profiles, which
lets me (or rather, will let me) do some pretty interesting stuff for
matching.

Now I've gone about this completely the wrong way: building a non-niche
product, and building it before any kind of marketing plan. I realise the odds
are pretty much against me on every front. The two biggest obstacles I see are
heavy SEO keyword competition and, well, zero user base to start with. Adding
insult, this isn't my field so I've got no networks to lean on for support.

Despite all that, I feel strongly about the idea. If I don't pull it off now,
I'm convinced that someone else eventually will: I'm convinced this is the
right direction for the people-matching problem.

If anyone's interested, I'll be blogging very openly about the whole startup
(link on homepage). In particular, I'll be publishing detailed analytics as I
go along.

Would seriously love any kind of feedback from HN: especially if anyone has
any particular ideas or suggestions to help get me going on the
growth/marketing front. You think anyone will actually care?

~~~
dave1619
The website is somewhat unclear on what distinguishes Wusoup from all the
other dating sites. What's your killer function? That's what should be
highlighted. Also, maybe you should let people browse for free before signing
up.

~~~
ptaoussanis
Hi Dave,

I've been struggling a little to succinctly articulate the "killer function",
since it's more an interplay of things that take a little explaining. The text
at the top was my attempt so far: will think some more on it.

It's fully functional without registration, btw - only message sending is
disabled. Just scroll down for the profiles. I'll put in a note at the top to
make it clearer.

