Build something 100 people love

“Build something 100 people love, not something 1 million people kind of like.” - Brian Chesky, Airbnb co-founder and CEO

There’s lots of music I kind of like. I stream that music on Spotify.

And then there’s music I love. I buy the vinyl. And the t-shirt. And when the artist plays The Ryman, I buy tickets even if they’re a little too expensive.

We don’t pay for things we kind of like.

We pay for things we love.

If we try to build products or services or brands that are good and safe and designed for broad appeal, we’re missing something.

That’s not how great products or services or brands are built.

They’re built by winning a few early adopters. And then by turning those early adopters into raving fans.

We shouldn’t build for the first 1 million users. We should build for the first 100 users.

If we try to build for 1 million users, we’re unlikely to get 100. And if we do get 100, we’re unlikely to keep them.

But if we focus on building something 100 people will love and rave about, we just might get to 1 million.