Kevin Systrom Quotes

One of the top causes of startup death - right after cofounder problems - is building something no one wants.

The problem with entrepreneurship is we are often working really hard producing high quality products that no-one wants. The creation of stuff is not valued.

I think, when I see entrepreneurs, they tend to talk about the market and the industry - which is obviously very important, but the most important thing is you're product. What are you selling? And does it really have product-market fit?

Products are sold because they solve a problem or fill a need. Understanding problems and needs involves understanding customers and what makes them tick.

Not all startups are alike. One of the key ways they differ is in the relationship between a startup's new product and its market.

It's easier to build a business around a first-class product, even if it's a more expensive product to produce.

What I tell founders is not to sweat the business model too much at first. The most important task at first is to build something people want. If you don't do that, it won't matter how clever your business model is.

If you make a really good product that people want and are willing to pay for, money will come.

If you are planning to start a business, and if you want that business to have a hope of succeeding, be sure you are approaching your venture from a true Entrepreneurial Perspective.

The goal of a private company is, first, zero to one: Get past the product-market fit; figure out whether people actually care about what you're trying to build and someone will pay you money for that. That's the zero to one problem.

Too many bar owners built a bar for themselves... when they should have built what their market and demographic demands!

Being right is important. Too many great teams march off saying, 'If we build it, they will come,' and then never are able to change the idea towards something that people really want.

A successful business must have a sound knowledge of its market and work on how its product or service will be different, stand out and improve people's lives. If you can ensure it responds to a real need in the market place, your business can punch well above its weight.

Creating demand is hard. Filling demand is easier. Don't create a product, then seek someone to sell it to. Find a market - define your customers - then find or develop a product for them.

You only get points when you make something the market wants. So if you work really hard on the wrong things, no one will care.

Southwest Airlines is successful because the company understands it's a customer service company. It also happens to be an airline.

You need to focus on creating the actual value of the company, not just the theoretical value. The actual value comes from a great product that sells well and is ultimately profitable.

We all have jobs in our lives that we must get done. We reach out and bring products into our lives to get these jobs done. Marketing is all about asking, 'What job is the customer trying to accomplish?'

Fans will come if you have a good product.

There are two ways to extend a business. Take inventory of what you're good at and extend out from your skills. Or determine what your customers need and work backward, even if it requires learning new skills. Kindle is an example of working backward.

The way to build billion dollar companies is to first build something people love. There isn't really a shortcut there.

When you create something that is popular, when you create a solution, you're an innovator, and you solve problems for people and they like what you have to offer, of course you automatically make money.

During the early stages of an industry, when the functionality and reliability of a product isn't yet adequate to meet customer's needs, a proprietary solution is almost always the right solution - because it allows you to knit all the pieces together in an optimized way.

To bring out a new technology for consumers first, you just had a very long road to go down to try to find people who actually would pay money for something.

The basic idea that marketing is wrong at its core is one of the main reasons why innovation seems blocked and unpredictable.