Tim Draper: the product before the pivot
During his interview with Richard, Tim Draper recalled products that changed direction before becoming familiar company names. He described Hotmail and Skype as examples of a business moving beyond the idea first presented to an investor.
The first idea was different
Draper said Hotmail originally came with an idea about helping people with their websites. He also recalled Skype beginning with Wi-Fi sharing. These are his recollections in the interview of how the products changed.
A company name can hide the earlier work
The familiar name makes it easy to describe a company as if its eventual product had always been the plan. Draper's account places a change in the product before the later result. His Hotmail distribution story adds a second change: how people would discover the service.
In Tim Draper's words
"all of those great companies pivoted too" (Tim Draper, interview with Richard C. Wilson)
How to use this
- Record the original product idea separately from the product customers eventually used.
- When describing a pivot, identify what changed and what customer behavior informed the change.
Questions and answers
Which examples did Draper discuss?
He recalled earlier product ideas associated with Hotmail and Skype.
Is this the same as the Hotmail referral-loop lesson?
The referral loop concerns distribution. This page concerns changes to the underlying product idea.