My beta is live and I know my target market. Now how do I start getting more beta users?

I think I see the problem.

"How do I get more users? By the way check out the product!"
These two things have almost nothing to do with one another. Randomly handing out beta keys generally doesn't do it either.

"What's the pricing like? How does XYZ work? Try these 50 different things!"

These are distractions.

The problem? You lack focus.

There are many approaches to acquiring early users. I'll be writing about just one. The best one. It's not just me saying that, it's nearly every Founder and Growth Hacker I've spoken with, watched/listened-to live/recorded, or read books/articles by. It builds close connections, strengthens your product, tells you if you have to pivot ASAP before you've invested serious effort, and gets you a ready-to-go community.

All before you launch.

Maybe you don't believe me. That's fine. Pick ONE other method and go hard. I write this because what happens is a first-time Founder thinks they're the exception, "I'll show them!" (the... people who've done it already? OK...), takes the spray & pray approach and flops. They wind up posting to Medium or YouTube a couple of months later to say how wrong they were and how much time they've wasted. A lot of times they don't recover.

✯✯✯ THE BEST METHOD TO GET EARLY USERS ✯✯✯
If you do it right, this is the only method you'll need to get off the ground as a single Founder or small team.

TL;DR? Connect with your target audience directly and personally. In your case, you'll connect with product managers and inbound marketers.

OK, is that too vague? That's too vague. I hate when some "guru" comes out and says "oh yeah just do BLAH BLAH VOMIT it's EASY" and then moves on because what they're really doing is trying to sell you.

NOTE: I'm presenting this method through the lens of someone with a LinkedIn profile. If you don't have a LinkedIn profile and instead rely on AngelList or a social media platform then the principles and tasks still apply but the names of buttons/fields and the specific clicks required will differ.

Step 1.
Open up your favorite spreadsheet software. I like Microsoft Excel. Spreadsheets give you a lot of flexibility in working with data. Create columns for the name, email, job role, company, pain point, profile link, and dates of contact for all the people you're targeting. Here's a sample. Feel free to make a copy. Be sure to check out the Comments I left to help get you started.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1KMVYR8PmF_aj8auu0M9IbDaJb2u5jabEyQNjRBYWHq0/edit?usp=sharing

Step 2.
Whip open LinkedIn. Check out your profile. Does it say anything about your startup? Or that you're working on a stealth project? Or that you're working on (cool thing that solves problem XYZ) at least? If so, great! If not, WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU? What, you're afraid that if it fails someone will embarrass you with it? I mean this in the nicest way possible: nobody cares about it because they don't even know about it in the first place! Put a link to the site in your profile. State the problem you're solving. Pitch! Say there's an exciting closed beta and "send me a note with 'OMG I have that same problem!' and I'll get you access".

Congratulations, your LinkedIn profile is now a landing page.

Step 3.
OK, stop messing around with your profile. Let's get to the real work. Using LinkedIn, find all of your Product Manager connections. Not sure how?

Go up to the search bar, type in "Product Manager", and when the search window drops down, click "Product Manager in People".

Next, click the "Connections" drop-down, check "1st", and then click "Apply".

See each of those people? Start opening profiles. Open a few at a time. Don't reach out yet. Follow the process, we'll get there. Go to each profile and then copy name, email, title, company, and profile link into the spreadsheet.

Pro tip: print a copy of each profile to PDF for an offline reference on each person. You can quickly go back and gather missing information without looking like a LinkedIn stalker.

Step 4.
Now do you reach out? No! I pity the fool who doesn't follow the process! Now do another LinkedIn Search to find all of your Inbound Marketing connections. "Whoa, Sean that's not a very common title, are you sure it will work?" Of coursek. LinkedIn's Search doesn't just search Headlines but also titles and blocks of text such as the Summary. It also finds common alternate terms, such as "demand" vs "inbound".

Like before, go to each person's page and copy their name, email, title, company, and profile link into the spreadsheet.

Don't reach out yet. Take a deep breath and follow the process.

Step 5.
You should have a list of at least 100 people. If you don't, ask yourself if you really know your target market. Are you simply not connecting with them? Start now. In LinkedIn, pull up past employers and start connecting with any old co-workers in your target audience. If you didn't work with them closely you still worked together. Next, connect with anyone in your feed who is part of your target audience. "Jill, I loved your post about (thing). What drove you to share it?" Talk. Make connections. Get that list up to at least 100 people.

If you exhaust these methods and you're still only at 75-80 people, scroll down to my next "...". If you're at 50, this will be tough but still doable. If it's under 50, either you're new to LinkedIn or you think you know your audience, but you don't. "Yes I do!" No, you don't. You aren't connected enough to know past your own inner circle.

I'm not saying give up! I'm saying be honest with yourself. Build more connections, get more embedded into the bigger audience, and tune in more closely: are they really talking about the problem you're looking to solve? Or is it just something you dreamed up after you slipped and hit your head while trying to hang a clock? (Anyone get the reference?)

...

Now that you have a solid 100 people in your spreadsheet, it's time for the one and only MANUAL FILTERING of the list you'll do. Scan down the list once. Does any name make your hair stand up on end? Write it down but keep going. Finished? Have a few names written down? Does the thought of connecting with one of those people make your brain scream, "AWW HELL, NAW"? Pull them off the list.

If you're pulling more than 4-5 people off the list, stop and look again. If it's fear of being embarrassed if you fail, keep them on the list. If it's "I haven't talked to them in forever", keep them on the list. Only if there is a TRUE downside are you allowed to drop them.

Step 6.
You now have a list of roughly 95 target users. Next up? Recon! And one of the reasons I love spreadsheets so much. Missing any email addresses? Filter the Email column for "Blank". BOOM, instant answer! Now, how do you get any email address in the world?

Ask!

Go to the first person with a blank in the email column. Click the person's LinkedIn profile link. Click "Message" and type something like:

"Hey, (first name)! I've been working on a new project and I remember you as an awesome (job role) back at (company/project). I'd love to get your opinion on what I'm doing. I'll (owe you/buy you a coffee/take your sister out on that date I promised her in high school). What's your email? Mine's (email)."

Give it 24 hours. Anyone who wants to reply will reply. Plug those email addresses in. For anyone who bites just go ahead and pitch them. Jump down to Step 7 for the pitch text. Then jump back up here.

Get to day 2 and still have some blank email addresses? Use LinkedIn to find the mutual connections you share. For each person still on the BLANK list, go back to their LinkedIn profile, click Mutual Connections and CLICK THE FIRST PERSON IN A ROLE RELEVANT TO YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE.

...OK, shouting over! Send them a note:

"(First name), how do you know (Target Person)? (S/he) and I (met/worked together) at (project/company). They were a really great (job role) and I want their opinion on a project I'm working on. Mind sharing their email with me? I reached out on LinkedIn but I think they have their notifications disabled."

Sometimes you'll get an email address. Sometimes you'll get a polite decline, "I don't want to share someone else's info". But almost every time, they'll ask what you're working on. See why you chose someone in a role relevant to your target audience? All part of the plan.

"Funny you ask! I've found a lot of (job role) folks have this big problem with (problem). Does that sound like anyone you know? Let me know! I'm looking for more folks to give me feedback on what to tweak before I launch in (Q# 2018)."

Now you might get nothing or "I don't, sorry!". But you can also get, "That sounds pretty neat. I'd love to check it out!" Enroll them into your product and add them to your user tracking tool. Sometimes you even strike gold: you'll get a "Oh yeah, talk to (person) over at (profile link/email address). I just shot them a note about you!"

All right. Have you got at least 80 emails and you're just working out the last 5-15? Go, go Gadget Step 7!

Step 7.
"SEVEN?! HOLY CRAP, SEAN! WHEN THE HECK DO I START GETTING USERS?!"

Right about now. Besides, didn't you pick up a few in in Step 6? No? Well crap. Let's do something about that. You're going to message everyone on your list and "hook" as many as possible.

Craft two email pitch templates, one for each job role. In this case, that's one for Product Managers and one for Inbound Marketers. You need to hit 3 core points:

1. The problem to be solved, which is a problem you believe they have.
2. How your app solves the problem.
3. The call to action.

Example:
"{first name}! As a {role} for {product}, I know you put a lot of time and effort into {problem}. I'm building a new app called {app name} that lets you do {thing 1}, {thing 2}, and {thing 3}. Reply back with a HELL YES! if you want early access - totally free, no spam, no BS."

No more slow steps here- send those messages out. Be sure to replace the {xxxxx} spots with the required data so you don't look like an idiot! ;)

OK, OK, one more step...

Step 8
Enroll all the "HELL YES!" responses. Anyone who doesn't reply in 24-hours, message them again. "Added {X} fellow {job role} into {app name} today. Starting to get busy. I really want your feedback on it, but I probably can't juggle more than {5X or 10X} early users right now. Let me know if you want in ASAP!" If they respond back to decline, knock them off the list. You don't want to spam people in your target audience right now.

Another 24 hours of silence from anyone? Use another hook. "First 48 hours has been crazy and I'm getting some great feedback. Already building one of the requested features into {app name}. Yours could be next! Sure you don't want in? Still have {Y} spots open!"

Essentially you mix this up over 4-5 days with anyone who doesn't respond. Remove anyone who declines. No spamming.

On the last day, swing for the fences with any last holdouts:

"Hey {name}, sorry for all the spam this week. I'm super excited about {app name} so I'm making one last push for you to sign up and check it out. Let me know by {time... like "midnight"} before I close the doors to early access. And again, no BS, no credit card, no nothing. I truly want you to check {app name} out and share your candid feedback with me. Thanks again."

✯✯✯

All done? Enroll a bunch of new users? Great! If not, let me know and I'll see how I can help.

By the way, did you figure out why this method works basically forever when you're just starting out?

Ah right, I left that part out. Wow, what a bonehead I am...

YOU ASK YOUR USERS FOR REFERRALS! Leverage them to build a NEW list of folks in your target audience, then you just repeat the process only THIS TIME you can say "So and so sent me. They had this {problem} and they are LOVING my new app because it solves rah rah rah."

I think you get the idea.

NOW, GO FORTH AND MULTIPLY (your beta users!)

Nice. I'm trying it out on https://cryptolerts.io now as there are a couple of first login tasks that would be nice to guide users through.

facebook ads, google adwords ads, blogging relevant content, getting relevant backlinks, trial runs on other websites, with data to show the improvements in metrics, testimonials from happy customers, press coverage, virality built into the product ( facebook model ), virality bolted on as a discount ( dropbox model ), using your own product to decrease bounces, affiliate marketing, attend meetups your customers are at and pitch it to them during networking time, outsource sales copywriting, email capture with drip campaigns, leveraging various marketing as a service tools like appsumo. big topic but maybe those get the gears turning.

Looks great @DevMunchies! I'm struggling with the same so I can't really help you much there ^^ but if you don't mind what do you use for your blog? I like the looks :)

Hey Sam! I'm struggling with the same problem myself so thank you for posting this, I'm excited to see what comes back.

I don't mean to take away from great answers on this thread but I just launched my site and I think we could help each other out!

My site www.githustle.com is basically a place for developers to post their awesome side projects and connect with someone willing to help them with their marketing.

I've gone through about 7 or 8 projects now that haven't gotten off the ground simply because I don't have the time/motivation/skills to go out and market my projects (after all doing dev, sales, and marketing along with a full-time job is a HUGE amount of work!).

I build GitHustle to help developers that have projects in the same beta phase that we find ourselves in. I'd love it if you gave it a try! It's free and it could get your app more exposure. I added some of my older projects a few days ago and already got two people contacting me and trying to help!

Either way, from someone in the same boat as you, good luck on your search for users! You'll have to let us know how it goes!

Well, I'm in.

Where is the link to the Chrome Extension? Where is the script I should put on my site?

I do not have an answer to your question, but the message for requesting access to the beta on the site, "Think you're special? Request Access", actually made me laugh out loud. Thanks for that :)

There are two kinds of people that you may seek -

(1) Early adopters - These are the people who you need desperately at an early stage to validate and evolve your business model. These are the people who are already trying to solve a pain point that you are trying to address to through your business model. Identifying and connecting with your early adopters is the most crucial part of the work in the early-stage business building.

(2) Beta testers - These are not early adopters, in the sense, they do not have a pain point that you are trying to solve through your business model. But they can possibly test the technicality of the product (like - whether a beta version of a product works or not). This is essentially used to identify bugs in your coding (in case of a tech context).

Finding each of these two kinds of guys involves different work.

Love it. What’s the pricing plans?

And to answer your questions, probably a cost effective way may be to hunt down new product launch founders on PH and from incubators to add this. Offer it for free for 6 months or something.

Ask yourself what would Gary Vee do? Target product managers with FB ads and linked in content. Wish I had an original suggestion of my own but that's all that came to mind. Maybe it helps, maybe it doesn't.