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0 pointsLeonM4y ago0 comments

> Is it really realistic to build something people "need"? Humanity survived millions of years without a single piece of software; it's unlikely that anything you write is ever going to be a "need".

Replace "need" with "desire" and suddenly it makes sense.

People have a desire to socialize (facebook), people have a desire to be heard (twitter), people have a desire to communicate (messenger apps, phones), people have a desire to travel (automotive, travel), people have a desire to be entertained (netflix et al). Etc. Etc.

You don't really 'need' any of it, but there is a very high demand, and thus a big market.

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zdragnar4y ago

Need in the context of the quote was used as opposed to "want". I think the point was to drive home that people are less likely to pay for, and continue using, things that they "want" versus "need".

The problem is, needs (as prerequisite to survival) isn't really what is being described here. "Desire" doesnt quite sounds like the right term either, because it is semantically no different than a want.

Rather than looking at the customer's spectrum of desire, perhaps a better framing is fulfillment- does the app fulfill a gap in a person's abilities, or does it sate an idle fancy?

Facebook and twitter do both, I think, at different levels. Perhaps that is why they are so successful.

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