Trend Shows Shift from 'Discovery Calls' to 'Micro-Engagements'

Y Combinator partner Gustaf Alströmer stresses that startups don't take off by themselves; founders make them take off by manually recruiting their first users. This echoes Paul Graham's famous advice to "do things that don't scale," a principle demonstrated by Airbnb's founders who initially traveled to New York to meet and understand their earliest users personally. The ideal first user is an "early adopter," a specific profile of person who is not just an early user. True early adopters are actively aware they have a problem, have likely already tried to solve it themselves, and possess the budget to pay for a better solution. YC Partner Michael Seibel advises founders to find these people within their own networks first, as they are more willing to work with an unfinished MVP. Before a product is even built, founders can find these potential users in niche online communities. Platforms like Reddit, Discord, Slack groups, and industry-specific forums are places where people are already discussing the problems you aim to solve. The key is to participate authentically by adding value and answering questions for weeks before ever mentioning your product. For direct outreach, a short, plain-text email of six to eight sentences is more effective than formatted templates. The message should clearly state who you are, the problem you're addressing, and include social proof like your background or YC batch status. The most successful outreach provides immediate value, such as sharing a relevant insight or resource, before asking for anything in return. To structure these initial conversations, many founders use the "Jobs-to-Be-Done" (JTBD) framework. This approach shifts the focus from "what are your pain points?" to "what 'job' are you trying to accomplish?" It helps uncover the user's underlying motivations and desired outcomes, leading to deeper insights than a simple feature request list. Platforms like Product Hunt, BetaList, and FirstUsers.tech can create a launch-day spotlight and a consistent stream of waitlist signups from people specifically looking to test new products. For B2B, LinkedIn is a valuable channel for finding and engaging potential customers by becoming a genuine member of relevant industry groups. YC partners consistently advise charging your first users from day one. The goal isn't revenue, but validation; customers paying money is a clear signal that you are providing them real value. As YC General Partner Ankit Gupta notes, paying customers provide sharper, more honest feedback than free users ever will.