Product

Why You Need to Build for Scale from Day One

June 28, 2014

In the early days of your product, an explosion of users might seem like a faraway dream. But if you’re not preparing to scale even early on you’ll never be able to capitalize when it counts.

The fact is, you never know when you’ll experience a huge influx of users or interest in your product. If you’re not prepared to scale from the moment you start building, then you absolutely won’t be able to take advantage of that development when it happens. Steve Shoaff, CEO of UnboundID, recognizes that setting yourself up to scale right from the get go can be time consuming, but says it is ultimately worthwhile.

You can’t build a bigger house on an already shoddy foundation, says Shoaff. And if you find that you do need to suddenly scale, you don’t want to be in a situation where you have to do so under duress. That’s a perfect recipe for problems that can put your relationship with existing users at risk.

More Tips on Scalability

If You Think Scalability is All About Developing Software, You’re Wrong
In part one of a three-part series on software scalability, former PayPal executive and serial entrepreneur Mike Fisher addresses the three things that can help (or prevent) growing software businesses from scaling efficiently. Read more.
Why eBay Isn’t Big in Japan: Learning from a Billion-Dollar Mistake
In part two of a three-part series on software scalability, Mike Fisher shares a three-step process aimed at helping tech companies prepare for and properly manage the challenges of rapid expansion and growth. Read more.
Common Scalability Challenges: Are You Investing in the Right Things to Fuel Smart Growth?
Your company may have the market, product, and strategy in place to drive growth, but if it doesn’t properly manage these three scalability challenges, it could derail the business entirely. Read more.

Photo by: Symo0

Senior Content Manager

<strong>Jonathan Crowe</strong> is Senior Content Manager at <a href="https://www.barkly.com/">Barkly</a>. He was previously the Managing Editor of OpenView Labs.