Delaying GrabbrApp's Launch

TL;DR - GrabbrApp's launch is getting pushed out at least a month. I didn't really want to, but launching by the 17th was going to be untenable and this way I can launch a more feature rich and well-tested product.

I've had it in my head for several months now to launch GrabbrApp, my cyber security SaaS startup, on May 17th. I'll be the first to say this is an entirely arbitrary launch date, which is one reason why I'm not just super gutted to delay the launch. The reasons for not launching this Wednesday are several, as are my reasons for pushing the date out at least a month.

Feature Richness

One of the primary reasons for pushing the launch date is feature richness. As of right now, the API and UI are only going to allow a user to fetch SSL certificate information about a specific domain. No file fetching, no port scanning, just that.

That's cool for a proof-of-concept, but also fairly boring.

I want to add a feature or two to the app before launch. It's not going to be fully fleshed out or perfect or anything, but I would like it to be a bit more feature rich before I launch.

Time Constraints Causing Negative Development Outcomes

Time constraints can be motivating if used properly. They can also cause a developer to cut corners, skip testing and break things that really don't need to be broken.

I don't want to do that.

I started noticing that GrabbrApp's development was receiving some negative outcomes from the arbitrary time constraint. I was introducing pointless bugs to the code, not refactoring as I went, skipping out on features and tests for fairly critical parts of the project... for what? To meet an arbitrary deadline that 3 people actually know about?

Marketing... or Lack Thereof

Doing a quick search of my blog, I've posted a grand total of... one blog about GrabbrApp's development, my blog titled Chicken, Egg, Data Model. I have not developed:

• a content marketing strategy
• a paid ads strategy
• a list of warm beta testers
• a list of targeted companies and individuals

Frankly, I've been lazy on marketing. I have 20 newsletter signups, most of which are my email addresses used to test the API calls and such, because I've only released one newsletter in several months.

That's not great.

What's the point of "launching" an app if you aren't marketing it?

In Conclusion...

I'll be switching the verbiage on the front page of GrabbrApp to "coming soon" today. This isn't a cop-out, it's moreso a re-dedication to writing the best code and marketing the best product humanly possible, and not letting an arbitrary deadline make it worse for no reason.

I look forward to writing more about GrabbrApp's development over the coming weeks!