Jon Yongfook

"Distribution" is becoming a cope term. It's a very loosely-defined word, and it has this air of unattainability about it. It's too easy to say you're limited by your lack of distribution, and curse those who "have it". Here's a reality check: - You can have 100k followers on X and still nobody gives a shit about your product. Your audience and your customers are not necessarily the same thing. - You can have a mailing list of 10,000 people and still get zero conversions due to timing, messaging, or lack of relevance. - You can have millions of people using your free product but nobody wants to pay for the upgrade. Just look at the number of celebrity business ventures that fail. Restaurants, clothing brands, etc. They all have "distribution" but in the end it didn't make a material difference. Success is down to a matrix of different factors. It's about building a product that solves a problem, marketing that communicates that well, pricing that people find fair but also allows you to grow the business, growing multiple different marketing / distribution channels by being valuable and / or interesting, and the skills to do all of the above multiple times over because you won't be successful the first time. If you are looking at successful people on X and scoffing that they are only there because of their "distribution" you're missing the forest for the trees.

2015 launch checklist: product hunt post blog post announcement newsletter sent documentation published twitter thread posted waitlist removed 2025 launch checklist: stupid viral video waitlist added

Stripe added verified MRR links! So if you see anyone making wild MRR claims, it's pretty easy to ask them to prove it.

If you’re looking for a job at a startup think about: Founders are not just looking for capability. Being capable is the barrier to entry. Especially with AI tools. Founders are looking for autonomy. People who know what needs to get done, and get it done. Instant hire.