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Ask HN: How to market a new social network?

9 points by pmc255 ↗ HN
I've built a small social networking service that is a spin on Twitter, amongst other services. The main problem I'm running into is that it's hard to get users to start using it.

I think most people find social networks interesting because people they know are on it. But without an established user base, how do you actually attract the early users?

I've tried the general spray and pray method of submitting to various blogs that cover startups and social media, at various tiers. I've also reached out to friends to get them to try it out, and a small contingent have been using it and do enjoy the service. However, it seems hard for me and them to spread it beyond that.

Social networks are all about virality. I've added various triggers for my service to piggyback off of Facebook and Twitter, and allow the users to share/publish to their friends. However, I need that initial group of users in order to get the ball rolling. Any ideas on the most effective ways to do that?

10 comments

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c00p3r
It should be really innovative and self-evident service, otherwise it is impossible to convey people why they should pay attention to something other than Facebook or Twitter which are already serving them well.
dot
For starters, you could give us a link.
pedalpete
You say you've done the 'spray and pray' method, but have you posted on HN for feedback (I didn't see it in your submissions).

What did you spray and pray?

jfarmer
Density density density. You need to identify a core set of densely connected, ~1,000 people to get your social network started.

MySpace had the LA music scene. Facebook had Harvard. LinkedIn had the Silicon Valley hotentots, thanks to Reid's reputation and network. Quora has a similar group of highly active, densely connected users from Silicon Valley.

So you need to think about the ideal community for your network and find a way to get 100 to 1,000 of them on your site ALL AT ONCE, i.e., within a few days of each other.

The onboarding experience is absolutely crucial, too. There's a paper out there by Facebook's data team and some CMU researchers about what early experiences (on Facebook) are the strongest predictors of long-term engagement.

Not surprisingly most of them involve some sort of interaction with a friend. I don't have a link, but you should find it and read it.

bdr
Silicon Valley hottentots?!