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Core values
If aliens suddenly came to Earth and analyzed the “common characteristics of fast-growing startups,” what would they choose? The LilysAI team has a framework called the “Startup Blackbox Model,” which states that if you choose your work well (Maximum User Value) and execute it quickly (Super Fast Release), you can grow. Let’s explain them one by one.
The ‘Startup Black Box Model’ considered by the LilysAI team
1️⃣ Super Fast Release
It drastically shortens the cycle of receiving feedback from users through your product.
I think there is already a right answer to whether a product is loved by users or not. However, the probability of finding that right answer is very slim, about 10 out of 10,000 attempts. We think about how to make more attempts in the same amount of time to increase the probability of success. We are serious about Super Fast Release, so much so that the name of the company and product, Lilys, was inspired by Release.
1.
Set minimum specifications to verify the hypothesis and use minimal resources.
a.
Even designing and developing it yourself may not be the minimum specification. We utilize all means to shorten the time, such as pre-typing and interviews.
2.
We are constantly thinking about the 'structure' for working quickly.
a.
Working quickly with an individual's job ability can increase the speed by at most 1.5 times. To increase the speed by 5 times or 10 times or more, it is important to structurally eliminate bottlenecks in the process.
b.
I agree with the 'man month myth'. More people doesn't necessarily mean faster development, and I think a small team with high talent density and a sense of ownership can get more work done faster.
3.
There's a difference between working fast and working sloppily.
a.
The core user journey should be smooth. Minimize the specs, but do your best to fix bugs before release. After release, check the numbers and fix any issues that are found immediately.
What we aim for
Even if it is an AI company and has research personnel, it uses model APIs from other companies before verifying user hypotheses.
We don't choose to build an MVP that considers every possible case where users might abuse it, but rather respond quickly when problems arise.
To test hypotheses faster, developers also conduct user interviews and designers experiment with no-code tools.
Developers can also provide feedback on the design, and designers can request changes to specifications from developers during product development.
Since design systems and code quality are just tools needed to achieve Super Fast Release when the team grows to a certain size, we don't spend much time on them before looking for PMF.
Avoiding
We do QA roughly to get it out there quickly.
We deploy without any data logging to avoid detecting user feedback or bugs.
We create products by squeezing each individual's body and soul through all-night work.
They just release products quickly and don't pay attention to what comes afterward, like user feedback or bugs.
I can't tolerate products of this quality, so I spend a lot of time creating the best code quality and the most amazing design.
We AB test every feature before it is released.
A single feature is always created collaboratively by multiple developers.
The LilysAI team is…
Before creating an actual product, we quickly verified within a few days whether there were actual user needs by pre-registering and interviewing users through pre-typing.
We released our first product in one month with just one developer, and then released 14 products in the following months.
I cold-mailed 30 companies and had 6 sales meetings even before my corporate product was built.
Even at a time when the paid plan had not been developed and implemented, we conducted a paid experiment using chat consultation + bank transfer.
2️⃣ Maximum User Value
Choose what adds the most value to your users.
Of course, the hit rate when trying something new is bound to be very low. However, I think that if you put in a lot of effort and put in a lot of effort, you can increase the odds a little bit.
I think a lot of people fall into these two traps when choosing a job:
A. Without knowing the users and the market, I do cool things that I want to do. ⇒ Even if I create features, no one will use them.
B. Do everything the user asks for ⇒ Our users like it, but the improvements are so small that new layers don't build up, and the product doesn't grow.
We routinely collect evidence that all three criteria are satisfied to select tasks that will grow with higher probability:
1.
Is it something that corresponds to a fundamental human desire that has not changed for a long time, and is it something that occupies a large area of that desire?
2.
Is this something people are actually doing today, and increasingly so?
3.
Are there any strong incumbent players whose customers overlap with ours, or can we do better? (Is it technically feasible at this point in time, or is there no product in the market that meets the need?)
What we aim for
We conduct qualitative (UT, interviews) and quantitative (data, market research) research on our users, potential users, and out-of-market users every day, and we try hard to draw a holistic picture based on this.
Before creating a feature, think about where the target users of that feature will be gathered. This will help you guard against imaginary users and enable more accurate GTM right after the release.
Avoiding
They build dark modes, mobile apps, extensions, etc. simply because users ask for them, without thinking much about the new user value they add.
It also doesn't address UX pain points along the core journey, as it needs to add new user value.
As a colleague, I would like to work with someone who shares the following two values:
3️⃣ Kind and Direct
Be honest in your feedback, but try to give your colleagues a sense of psychological safety.
I believe that people originally like to work and are happy. I am gathering team members who are self-motivated, can provide psychological stability to their colleagues, and can help them to immerse themselves.
1.
We strive to provide honest feedback and improve.
2.
I think logic is a castle built on emotions. I value the emotions of my colleagues and try to give them psychological stability.
4️⃣ Superman
I am willing to learn and do anything across job responsibilities to provide value to my users.
I want to work with someone who is willing to do whatever it takes to provide value to users and grow the product. It doesn't matter if it's your first time. I think you just have to think that you can take on the challenge with a happy mind.
The LilysAI team…
Developers can also think about what to do and implement it themselves rather than simply implementing predefined requirements.
Developers also meet users directly, conduct market research, and develop their perspectives on the product.
Even in non-development positions, we try anything to achieve our goals, including design, marketing, market research, and sales.
Want to learn more about the LilysAI team? 👇