How to not make an app
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Transcript of How to not make an app
CELEBRATING FAILUREHow to not make an app at an ad agency
The question of the day/year/era:Can ad agencies make products?
We tried. We failed.Then we kind of succeeded.
We learned more than 5 things. But here are 5.
1. Ad agencies were created
to serve clients’ needs, not their own.
2.The development process should not resemble
a Hieronymus Bosch painting.
Torture testing by multiple layers. Fighting for resources.
Answering too many masters.Competing with real clients for time, effort.
3.A startup is not a 9-5 job.
It’s definitely not a 9-10:30 every other day kind of job.
4.You can’t develop an app without developer buy-in.
5.Marketing: Stop writing checks
that Dev can’t cash.
We had t-shirt designs before we had any code.
t-shirt image
So, progress was slooooooooow.We lost momentum.
But then, we changed our approach.
Partnered with an outside resource.
Devoted a solid week to development.
Took the entire team off-site, focused.
Sprinted to the finish line.
And shipped a product.