Instagram started out as a feature on a “check-in” app called Burbn [think Foursquare]. Burbn was getting overcrowded with features. And it seemed their users were mostly excited about sharing photos from their locations. They saw the potential in the photo sharing and (kind of) ditched the check-in concept all together.
Foursquare was the idea baby of Dodgeball (1999). A texting app that would broadcast your whereabouts to a groups of friends via SMS messaging. The idea didn’t take off and was put on the back burner. Seven years later, with the onset of Twitter and smart phones, they ditched the texting feature and capitalized on social media.
Twitter was also a texting based service. With a text you could update your friends using short status updates. They eventually ditched the texting feature since it was too limiting. All the stereotypical lingo we associate with Twitter (i.e. @, #, RT) came from users messing around with the first version. When they moved to being a web-based platform, all of this jargon came with it too.
Pinterest used be “Tote.” An iPhone app that allowed you to shop your favourite stores in one place. That idea didn’t take off. Instead of doing any major shopping, women were just tagging and sharing items with their friends. They watched user behaviour and then re-focused. The rest is history.
If you’ve got an idea, start today. There’s no better time than now to get going. That doesn’t mean quit your job and jump into your idea 100% from day one, but there’s always small progress that can be made to start the movement.
No comments:
Post a Comment