I’m planning to launch my first MVP soon – a LinkedIn plugin. What would you recommend I focus on?
For the past 3 months, I’ve been building a LinkedIn extension that tracks activity and helps users avoid getting restricted or flagged by LinkedIn by quantifying their actions over time.
It’s based on a problem I’ve experienced myself, and (as bad as this might sound) I’m hoping I’m not the only one who has this problem. 😀
The product isn’t fully finished yet, but the core functionality is already working well enough to serve as an MVP.
The remaining features will be blurred out as “Pro” features with an upgrade button that will actually lead users to a waitlist.
At the same time, I’m preparing the marketing side of the launch (creating visual assets, writing descriptions, and getting everything ready for the Chrome Web Store).
Here is the WAITLIST, btw.
If you were in my position, what would you do to maximise the chances of people discovering the extension, installing it, and ideally joining the waitlist?
And one more thing: do you think this idea has the potential to succeed?
P.S. I do not have a landing page yet, either. :D
Replies
a few things i'd focus on:
the landing page matters more than it feels like it should right now. even a simple one-pager that explains the problem clearly will convert better than sending people directly to the chrome store. it's the first place people go to decide if they trust you.
for discovery, go where the problem lives. linkedin power users, sales folks, recruiters, growth people. they're on twitter, reddit, and communities like this one. a short post describing the restriction problem without pitching the product first tends to do well.
on the idea's potential: the blurred pro features with a waitlist is a smart move. it lets you validate what people actually want to pay for before you build it.
minimalist phone: reduce your screentime
@riya_pariyar Thank you Riya, I will try more to optimise it for the first launch and spend some time over it :)
Great shout posting here before the launch, the feedback you've received so far is ace.
On discoverability: I'd perhaps build a simple waitlist landing page sooner rather than later so that you can begin to shore up the domain ranking / authority prior to launching. This would help with things like email deliverability as well.
On potential: the core idea is solid. I'd say LinkedIn power users genuinely worry about restrictions. The waitlist plus blurred Pro features approach is a reasonable way to validate demand before building everything out.
When you do build the landing page, I'd be happy to run it through Ferguson (an AI landing page auditor I just launched) once it's live, if useful. Would be interesting to see what it flags on a waitlist-stage page specifically.
minimalist phone: reduce your screentime
@tedavis How can I reach you in case I will build the website? Any contact?
@busmark_w_nika Best place is the contact us link at the bottom of the Ferguson homepage.
minimalist phone: reduce your screentime
@tedavis Cool! Thank you! :)
Definitely a solid problem to solve. To get organic installs, you need to nail your Chrome Web Store SEO. Make sure your title and description explicitly use the exact phrases people search when they panic... like "LinkedIn limit tracker," "LinkedIn jail," or "avoid LinkedIn restriction."
minimalist phone: reduce your screentime
@min_minn1 I already included "LinkedIn profile", "LinkedIn ban", "LinkedIn restrictions"
One thing I'd love to see is a way for a user to post in multiple LinkedIn groups from a single interface. I do a lot of webinars, which I have to manually post in all of the related groups consuming tons of my time. That'd be something I'd pay for!
Hey,
I'm a linkedin player as well and one thing about building extension on top of linkedin is to make sure that you're not getting identified by them. The main reason is https://browsergate.eu/
They spy all extensions and their users base.
It also help them prioritize what kind of extension they'll sue according to the success it has + the negativity it bring to the platform.
Since you mentionned restrictions and stuff, they might be offended by it and make it shutdown.
There's plenty of way to protect against that, so as an advice, I would strongly suggest their detection method and avoid triggering them.
Good luck with your launch!
And one more thing: do you think this idea has the potential to succeed? :
My take : I think genuine users will NEVER use your product because they are confident that Linkedin will not flag them What you should target is B2B Users (may be recruiters/marketers/sales personnel) who want genuine profiles only to be pitched to. I think they can pay you for your product.
If you were in my position, what would you do to maximise the chances of people discovering the extension, installing it, and ideally joining the waitlist?
My Take : Once you find the correct ICP from above, you can find those people and target them wherever they hang out.
The "no landing page yet" part is where I'd start, even just a one-pager. Right now the waitlist has nowhere to point to, and a single page that names the exact pain ("stop tripping LinkedIn limits without realising") will convert the people you send from here far better than the Chrome Web Store listing alone.
For discovery, lead with that one painful moment, not the feature list. Show someone the "you're about to get restricted" warning before it happens and the install mostly sells itself. And watch what people do right after they open it, not what they say in the replies.
I'm launching DukieX on Product Hunt this Wednesday, so I'm deep in this exact question right now. Good luck, the problem is real.
I think you're solving a real pain point. I recently experienced a temporary LinkedIn restriction myself, and it was frustrating because there wasn't any clear explanation of what triggered it. Having visibility into activity before reaching those limits would definitely be useful. Wishing you the best with the launch!
Make sure your profile is active for at least 2 weeks before launch. I learned this the hard way — new accounts don't get much visibility on launch day. Also line up 5-10 people to upvote on day one, that's what gets you on the front page.
Hi Nika
I just signed up for your waitlist.
I see a lot of posts on LinkedIN with ideas and if you comment "some-idea", you will get a link to a download of a whitepaper in PDF format. This is clever in 2 ways as i see it: 1. The comments will trigger the LinkedIN algorithm to make your post more seen and 2. It is much easier to get people to sign up that way.
Yes i think it has potential as you don't have to be mindful all the time of whether or not your post is "ok".
Regards
Jan Riis Sørensen
Co-founder of Neuphlo.com