Behind-the-scenes of a B2C Marketplace in 2024

Hello IH!

Just got accepted, here is my story 👋

Wanted to share a quick behind-the-scenes look at the progress on Loby, the app my friend and I are developing.
Loby is designed to algorithmically match users with compatible flatmates or flats. Think of it as a mix of AirBnb and Hinge.

The MVP will be out around June. Before that, we are testing a pre-release version through a WhatsApp community. Users just fill out a quick form with their details, and the algorithm matches them up.

( Roast my landing page 😁: Loby )

We launched the service last week and gained 22 users, maintaining an avg rating of 7.8.
Our goal within the next few months is to service 200 users with an NPS >8.5.

For our GTM, we've tried different approaches:

• Reaching out to users on similar platforms:
  Found they were quite eager to switch and give our service a try.

• Collabing with Facebook groups:
  This has been the most successful approach yet. Most groups are very cooperative. Sharing insights and data 🤝

• Partnering with uni accommodations:
  Harder than FB groups but not impossible. Managing student allocations is useful in places like Durham, Sussex, etc., where, in some cases, a group of 6 students share one kitchen.

• Email and LinkedIn lead campaigns:
  Surprisingly effective.

We also attended loads of events. Slush in November '23 was crazy btw !!!

What are your thoughts? Any feedback will be very very very appreciated :)

Side note:
"Do Things That Don't Scale" - an article by Paul Graham that expounds on the philosophy of manually recruiting your first users. It's a really interesting read; highly recommend!

Nice to meet the community :)