Linktree for music curators - Certified fm update!
Been a minute, but here's an update.
Catch Up: I started a link-tree for music creators in Certified.fm that focuses on sharing spotify playlists. I hated all the auto-generated stuff spotify creates, and had some nostalgia for the old TRL days where people curated music they loved.
So I'm bringing it back.
I recently finished implementing a WYSIWYG editor that lets users resize the playlist blocks in a grid. It was really cool to implement and test. I wanted to give people the option to emphasize certain playlists with size, and rearrange based on what they wanted to show off.
But this feels like one of those feature traps. I thought it would be cool, so I did it. I probably could have simply kept the "featured" flag that keeps certain playlists tagged to the top, but damned if this isn't more fun.
I got a few more users and some random comments here and there, but no major traction yet. I also started sharing stuff on TikTok which is so far beyond my comfort level. Every time I open that app, I have to tell myself, "If 1,000s of people see this, it's because its resonating. If it sucks, no one will see it, so what's it matter?"
Either way. It's no lie that distribution is the real struggle. Especially with all the AI coding tools. Finding a problem, solving it in a way that makes sense, and then getting it in front of those people is super tough.
What's been the best way to find those first user champions?
Love the honesty about the WYSIWYG feature trap. "Damned if this isn't more fun" — we've all been there.
On finding champions: Before adding more features (like the grid sizing), have you tried removing the WYSIWYG and testing if anyone actually complains?
Sometimes the best validation is "what can I take away without losing users."
I learned this the hard way: built a $20K feature because it was "cool," zero users cared. Now I test with video prototypes first — show 10 music creators the "customizable grid" vs "simple featured flag," see which they'd actually use.
Quick test: Post two versions in your TikTok (or IG Stories) — "Want a drag-drop grid editor?" vs "Want a clean link page with one featured playlist?" See which gets more "I need this" comments.
Sometimes the simpler version wins, and you save weeks of engineering.
Keep shipping!
the feature trap observation is honest and important. ive built the same kind of cool-but-unnecessary features on my own projects and every time the answer was the same: distribution mattered 100x more than the feature did.
for first user champions in a music/creator niche specifically: find the curators who already share playlists on twitter/instagram stories manually. theyre doing the job your tool automates. DM 50 of them with a personalized message showing their playlist already set up on certified.fm. dont ask them to try it - show them what it looks like with their content already in it.
the tiktok hesitation is normal but your framing is exactly right. the algorithm is actually merciful - bad content gets 200 views and disappears. good content gets pushed. its the most forgiving distribution channel for someone whos uncomfortable on camera because the downside is basically invisible.
Love the idea of putting their playlists in there and showing them what it looks like. Really demonstrating the differences between what they're currently using and what it could be. Love that so much.