Shorts 23 | Max Rellin: User Conversations

About this episode

The Power of Direct Communication with Your Users

In the startup world, few things are as crucial for success as direct conversations with your own users. Max Rellin from Tellonym knows this firsthand – and his experiences show why user conversations aren't just nice-to-have, but absolutely essential.

What Makes User Conversations So Valuable?

Many founders believe they already know their target audience inside and out. They've created personas, conducted market analyses, and theoretically engaged with their potential customers. But reality often looks different: only through direct conversations with real users do the true needs, frustrations, and desires of the target group reveal themselves.

Max Rellin had this experience at Tellonym and consistently emphasizes how important it is to continuously talk with your own users. These conversations not only provide valuable insights for product development, but also help find the right direction for the entire company.

The Difference Between Assumptions and Reality

A common mistake startups make is staying in their own bubble for too long. They develop features they personally consider important without checking whether users actually want them. User conversations break this bubble and often bring surprising insights:

• –Features you thought were essential are barely used
• –Problems you didn't have on your radar occupy users daily
• –The way users employ the product differs greatly from original assumptions

How to Conduct Effective User Conversations

User conversations are more than just casual chats about the product. They should be structured and goal-oriented. The point isn't to sell your own product, but to receive genuine feedback and understand the users.

It's important to ask open questions and truly listen. Often the most valuable insights lie not in what's explicitly said, but in the nuances and between the lines.

The Continuous Process

User conversations aren't a one-time event, but should be a continuous component of company strategy. Users' needs and expectations evolve, just like the product and the market.

Max Rellin's experiences at Tellonym show that companies that regularly speak with their users not only develop better products, but also build stronger connections to their community.

The Value of Genuine Connections

In a time when much is digitized and automated, genuine human connections remain a crucial success factor. User conversations create this connection and help develop a product that's truly needed.

For every founder, user conversations should therefore not be optional, but a fixed part of their routine. Because at the end of the day, it's the users who decide the success or failure of a startup.