BetaPunch

BetaPunch Launches 2 New Features for Startups

Tue, 29 Jan 2013 12:59:00 -0500

Our customers are very important to us and when they speak, we tend to listen. There have been 2 major problems with the client side of things on BetaPunchso we decided to improve them. Check out the new features below and if you have any questions or comments about them feel free to comment on this blog post:

1. When you order a round of tests you can now control how many you receive at one time. For example, if you order 10 tests but only want to use 3 of them for the time being. Set the new drop down menu in your control panel to show how many you want to receive. (Notice where it says “How many do you want to use?”):

Once 3 people have tested your site your listing will automatically become disabled so nobody else can use up your available testing credits. This is great if you want to iterate regularly based off of the feedback you receive from our testers.

2. In the past, if a certain tester tested your website they would not be able to see your listing again if you ordered more tests. Many of you asked for the ability to invite the same tester back for another review. Well now you can allow certain testers you specify to see your listing and test your website again. Next to the tester’s email address it asks “Allow to test again?” If you set to “Yes” the tester will see your listing again in their feed and this notification below will appear:

On The Road to Recovery

Sat, 19 Jan 2013 11:35:00 -0500

In the days since screwing up social media and being a dick on twitter, I have been hard at work on BetaPunch, talking to customers, and making sure our service is 100 times better than it was before. As mentioned in my apology it wasn’t the first time I failed and it certainly won’t be my last.

I am doing my best to learn from the experience and use it to motivate me as I continue on into the future. So I am keeping my head down trying to churn out new things that can make BetaPunch better overall for our customers.

The week started out with hiring Jeremy of Wick Video to produce a awesome 30 second explainer video for BetaPunch. I felt that investing in a quality video like this would help show that I am serious about taking the business to the next level. The video turned out fantastic. It really provides a fun professional glance at what we are capable of and how we can help our customers improve conversions and sales for their website.

Check out the video:

I then emailed all of our customers, many of whom signed up for a free test after hearing about us from our social media troubles, and asked them how we could do better. Unfortunately, I got very little response. Most took their free test and went about their business. But that’s understandable. I now know that that’s a part of business and that I can’t convert every free sign up into a paying customer. That is just one of the many lessons I learned from my experience with Danielle.

I did however get a lot of awesome feedback from paying customers. One even decided to tweet about us:

These people believed in BetaPunch enough to pay me for it so I turned my focus almost entirely to them and listened to what they had to say.

They all wanted virtually the same thing:

Make it so when you order tests that you can choose how many you want to use at a time.

Currently clients only have the ability to turn their recorder on or off. This means if you have 5 test credits, and turn your recorder on, there is a good possibility you will get the 5 tests you ordered all at once. This means you can’t “rinse and repeat” as they say without purchasing more tests.

Of course you can manually pause the recorder when you receive a test but I understand that this process really needs to be automated. I want to make sure customers using BetaPunch have the ability to receive a test, iterate their site, receive another test, iterate again, and so on.

This is only the beginning. I have a lot in store and still a long uphill climb to go to get BetaPunch where I want it to be. I won’t stop working, and I won’t let the doubters get to me. But even if you do doubt me, trust me, I won’t be mean to you on twitter.

The New BetaPunch Explainer Video. Special thanks to @WickVideo

Fri, 18 Jan 2013 13:22:37 -0500

The New BetaPunch Explainer Video. Special thanks to @WickVideo

Why I won’t be closing down BetaPunch even though you won’t use it: A formal apology

Fri, 11 Jan 2013 19:34:00 -0500

Many of you already know the story: I publically released user tests for Danielle’s startup Refer.ly that should have never been released, and then spammed and antagonized her when she posted about her positive experience with a competitor. And it was really much worse than that, and we all know it. (Here’s how not to do social media).

I am fully aware and take complete responsibility for my actions. I screwed up; big time. And I sincerely apologize to not only Danielle, but to all of my previous customers, testers, and to everyone that has helped mentor me along the way here in the Baltimore Startup Community and beyond.

I have apologized to Danielle privately and I will do so here again publically. I won’t make any excuses for my actions even though it’s very challenging doing a startup and all I can say is I am still learning and it makes me hungry to try and do better.

This is not the first time I have failed, and it certainly won’t be my last. We have all failed before, just probably not to the same magnitude as I have. I don’t have any employees, nor investors, or a social media department. I am just me, trying to create a viable service that people love and want to use. It’s something that I love to do and is why I am going to keep doing it even though you don’t want to use it. And that’s ok; I completely understand and respect your reasoning. I have no issues with your decision as a potential customer.

I have let a lot of people down in this situation, but no one more than myself. This has definitely been an intense learning experience for me and one that I will never forget. I know that nobody, not just my customers, should be treated the way I treated Danielle the other day. I have a lot of learning and growing up to do, and I am going to keep striving to one day satisfy and make amends to everyone that I can both as a person and in business.

Thank you,

-Ross N.

BetaPunch.com

Photo

Mon, 17 Dec 2012 20:37:29 -0500