Slack’s Approach to Messaging

Be less busy!

That’s Slack’s homepage in 2013.

You’d hardly guess the product. But you already have the solution.

In 2014, they launched officially with 16,000 active users.

What fascinates me is Slack’s approach to messaging isn’t all about its superior product features.

So what did they do differently?

For instance take look at some of Slack’s headlines from 2013:

  • “Flickr Cofounders Launch Slack, An Email Killer” (Fast Company)
  • “Flickr founder plans to kill company e-mails with Slack” (CNET)
  • “The Co-Founder Of Flickr Wants To Replace Email At The Office” (Business Insider)

Now let’s breakdown the narrative.

  1. Established credibility – The Co-Founder of a already successful business
  2. Addressed the target audience – Busy business executives & leaders overloaded with emails.
  3. More than a boring business – Not just another business tool. It’s revolutionary.
  4. Real results – Promises to change the way you do business.

They didn’t compete on product superiority.  Instead competed on outcomes.

In