3 ways to find your first 50 beta testers
Building your first app?
Then, your single biggest goal at this stage would be to ensure that your app solves a real problem and get market validation.
Once you've released your MVP, your mission is to find "Early adopters" to test your app.
In my example, I launched Vuzers, a tool that helps SaaS founders collect and display video testimonials.
We decided to launch a closed beta for free. I know that not everyone will agree to make a free beta. But I think it's the quickest way to get traction at the beginning. 🚀
Attract the right users
To get the most relevant and quality feedback, ensure your Beta users are from a group or segment of your target audience. You don’t just want someone to point out the bugs in your app, but you want them to also give you feedback on what features work for them and what doesn’t.
So where do you find users to Beta test your app?
Here are 3 places that worked for me.
There are several sub-Reddit communities where you can submit your app and get feedback. This can also drive early interest in your app.
I submitted Vuzers to r/SideProject, r/startups, r/SaaS.
Facebook Groups
Some people will tell you to actively participate in discussions and help other members. But if you just joined a group and you need beta testers right now, follow this trick:
- Join a group that matches your audience.
- Do a search on this group looking for the term "beta".
- If you find other members that have promoted their app looking for beta testers, go ahead and post your app.
- If not, ask the admin if you can submit a post telling him that your app offers real value for the group members. You can also offer him a free account for your app if you think it's worth it.
Slack channels
Other trick:
- Join Slack channels of your targeted audience
- Do a profile search looking for job titles: Freelance, CMO etc.
- Send a direct message to the members that match your search results.
We got 50 beta testers in 10 days following those tips and tricks.
Hope it will help you find your first early adopters! :)
❤️ - with love
Although these are great places to find users, you have to earn it.
You can't just go into a community and ask for something from them. It's just weird.
If you engage in those communities for awhile however and provide value before you ask, perfectly acceptable.
The common advice I follow is give, give, give, give, and then ask.
Of course what you say is the optimal strategy but it takes a lot of time to build this kind of relationship. If I didn't have time to engage with the members of a FB group for example, I offer them a free beta. It's a win win.
"50 beta testers in 10 days" 🙄
What do you mean?
One of the best ways to get beta testers is to track and respond to topics that are relevant to your project. For these purposes, I created a mentionlist.com. It allows you to track mentions on reddit, twitter and facebook.