

Ask HN: What are the pros and cons of releasing your app with a beta phase? - mvleming

Hey guys,<p>I&#x27;ve been Googling for articles that talk about rolling out with a beta phase and I haven&#x27;t found many. What apps should you release with a beta phase first, or should you release all apps with one? In what cases would you not want to have a beta phase? Doesn&#x27;t a beta phase hurt the chances of an app going viral?<p>I thought these questions would be perfect for the HN community.<p>Happy holidays!
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erichurkman
Beta phase for an existing app (new version) or completely new app? I'm not
sure it matters much if you slap a 'beta' label on a new app. When you first
kick an app off, you're going to be closely monitoring crash reports, bug
reports, reviews, feedback, etc regardless of if you call it 'beat' or not.

A 'beta' label is not going to stop or cause your app to go viral. If your app
does take off but crashes and is full of bugs, 'beta' is not going to stop
negative reviews.

If you are concerned about bugs or need more testing, try out Fiverr or any of
the mobile testing startups.

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Lorenz-Kraft
Hi, i never thought much about it, because in my view the beta phase is just
there to get many feedbacks on the product itself. This might be usability,
bugs or even more fundamental feedbacks.

But like you mentioned, it also might be a good chance for promotion ... if
you want to promote an unfinished product ... depends on the basic
"revolutionary" idea you are trying to spread.

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mvleming
Huh, I thought you could use a beta phase to promote the app for the opposite
reason—by having a beta phase you can have a huge release to the public, as
opposed to marketing the app must be a revolutionary idea because it's in its
beta phase.

Which makes me want to ask: does a beta phase mean it's only open for use to
those who've requested and have been given access? Or can you have an app in
the beta phase and also have it open for everyone to use?

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ibstudios
People don't care what a beta is, they care if it works or now. Be careful if
you list your app in a place where people can review it. People view things
for what the are, not for what the can be.

