How Do I Build in Public

Last week, I hosted @trulykp from On Deck in a meetup about 'Build in Public'.

Here are some thoughts on what is BIP about, what are the upsides, and how to deal with the downsides — with excerpts from the meetup.

What is ‘Build in Public’?

Build in Public to me is sharing pieces of your work and learnings in public to help others and build a community.

Why is it important now?

It has been pioneered by Joel Gascoigne (buffer), @rrhoover (Product Hunt), @levelsio (NomadList).

Now, with less reliance on media, PR, and paid ads, founders and makers have turned to build their own audience. One way is through BIP.

Who should be doing it?

KP: It helps me interact with other interesting people around the world. I just wanted to build in a way that would expose me to other ambitious people outside of Atlanta. And for me, that was happening through Twitter.

What are the upsides?

KP: It contributes to four functions in one:

• Sales - selling the vision
• Marketing - staying on top of mind
• Product development - keeping an ear on the pulse of what people are thinking about your product
• Customer service - building community

What are the by-products of Building in Public?

• Builds trust
• Showcases authenticity
• Builds an audience
• Gives 10, asks for 1
• Creates content
• Builds a brand
• Learns from the crowd

How to mitigate copycat risk?

KP: Philosophical - If you fear that someone will copy — you won't accomplish much. After a certain level, ideas are less about the actual idea, but more about the execution.

Tactical: Understand the IP laws, cease and desist to protect yourself.

How do you get comfortable sharing successes and failures?

KP: It has more to do with your mental framing of failure.

E.g.: I had a goal of 30 sign-ups in a week. But after I launched my landing page, I got 27. I failed.

But you also got 27 people to give you their trust.

Who are your inspirations?

KP: @rrhoover and @csallen. I noticed they're prolific and fearless about sharing their work on Twitter. I watch their insights and learnings from that. So, I just wanted to continue the tradition.

Let me know how you plan to build in public below!

P.S. Liked this? Read the entire post with more details on Substack and video recording of the meetup will be uploaded on YouTube soon. Stay tuned!
https://thediscourse.substack.com/p/build-in-public