What success looks like

Here's what happened when successful companies got this right:

• ‍Facebook: "We told a couple of friends. And then one of them suggested putting it on the Kirkland House online mailing list, which was, like, three hundred people. And, once they did that, several dozen people joined, and then they were telling people at the other houses."‍
• Slack: "We begged and cajoled our friends at other companies to try it out and give us feedback. We had maybe six to ten companies to start with that we found this way. The pattern was to share Slack with progressively larger groups."‍
• Yelp: "Inviting people from our network (mostly former coworkers from PayPal) drove our initial users. We asked all our network to invite their friends, and being startup people who wanted to help us, they obliged, so two-degrees out we probably got to 1k or so users."‍
• LinkedIn: Reid Hoffman "intentionally seeded the product with successful friends and connections recognizing that cultivating an aspirational brand was crucial to drive mainstream adoption."‍
• Lyft: "Before the waitlists came personal email invites to our friends."‍
• Pinterest: "So we released the app and I did probably what everyone does–emailed all my friends... And no one really got it, to be totally honest with you. But there was a small group of people that were enjoying it."

The pattern: targeted outreach to relevant people, starting small, building from early wins, and leveraging the network effect.

Making it work for your situation

For Technical Founders

Your network might include other founders, engineers, and tech workers. These people understand the building process and often want to help fellow entrepreneurs. Don't hesitate to reach out even if you haven't talked in years.

For Non-Technical Founders

Leverage your industry experience. If you came from marketing and you're building a marketing tool, your former colleagues are perfect first users.

For First-Time Founders

Don't underestimate family and friends. While they might not be your target market, they know people who could be. And they're often your most enthusiastic supporters.

The Second-Degree Strategy

After someone becomes a customer or gives feedback, always ask: "Do you know anyone else who might find this useful?" This is how you expand beyond your immediate network.

When someone does connect you with others, treat that referral like gold. You're borrowing their credibility, so always:

• Do fantastic work for any referred clients
• Thank the person who made the introduction
• Keep them updated on how it went

Building Long-term Relationships

Remember: this isn't about using people, it's about creating mutually beneficial connections.

A few key principles:

Be honest about your product's limitations: You're just getting started. Your product isn't perfect yet, and that's okay. People from your network will be more forgiving if you admit you don't have it all figured out.

Don't make promises you can't keep: In normal sales, if you don't deliver, you only risk your business relationship. In network sales, people trust you for who you are, so you're risking friendships.

Remember: This is a Mutual Favor

One final insight: people generally want to help fellow entrepreneurs succeed. You're not imposing by reaching out, you're offering value and giving people a chance to be part of something meaningful.

As one founder put it: "You are an entrepreneur and you are trying to change the world in some way. That's a romantic thing to do and people will want to help you." At the start, you're mostly looking for feedback and don't need to prove anything yet. Use this leverage while you have it.

When people see your hard work, supporters come naturally. Be honest, try to do your best, and always keep your promises.

Your Next Steps

1. List your goals: What do you need from your network?
2. Make your list: Go through all your contacts
3. Prioritize ruthlessly: Keep only the most relevant 20%
4. Research each person: Understand their current situation
5. Write personalized messages: Use the templates as starting points
6. Send 5-10 per day: Don't overwhelm yourself
7. Follow up consistently: Track responses and follow up appropriately

Start with 5 messages today. Your first customers are probably already in your contacts.