We've been using the "lock & unlock your door with an app on your phone" solution from Lockitron for two years now. In fact, here's a blog I wrote in 2010 with a video showing how it works. As early adopters, Paul, one of the Lockitron founders, was great about coming by our office to fix the early version of Lockitron whenever it had trouble. We were happy users of Lockitron version 1.0.
And that's all I heard about Lockitron for two years. But it turns out Paul, Cameron & team have been super busy. Today they launched a new version of Lockitron in a really smart way. It's so impressive that I'm going to spend a few minutes dissecting it, because we can all learn from what they've done. I'd also like to invite anyone from Lockitron to give more detail on my observations in the comments section below.
The first and most obvious thing they did was use a Kickstarter-type approach to their launch. When you visit www.Lockitron.com you see what I've taken a screenshot of above. (I'd be curious to know if they're using a while-labeled Kickstarter-type service, or more likely, just taking the best from Kickstarter's approach and doing it in-house).
As I've outlined in the screenshot, they set a goal which (purposefully or not) is now massively oversubscribed. It makes you feel like you have to get in on the action.
The value prop and call to action are also very clear, and they've used Amazon Payments to collect payments, which makes the purchasing process virtually seamless for most users.
As you scroll down on the site, you'll see a very easy-to-follow building of value with features clearly outlined and another call-to-action button at the bottom.
The video at top is very well done. It's short, well produced and understandable. It outlines the various benefits of Lockitron, including refernces to AirBnb, not having to take keys with you when you go running, and even the ability for the door to lock & unlock based on your proximity to it.
At the core of it, Paul & Cameron have come up with what looks to be a really great upgrade to their original product (which itself was very good and forward-thinking). And that's the biggest lesson of all. All the marketing they're doing around the launch would be useless if the actual product wasn't any good.
While the very early Lockitron system was great -- we still use it today-- this new version looks to be absolutely phenomenal. They've figured out how to use Lockitron over an existing door lock, which should spur a good amount of adoption, along with other great features which you can watch in their video.
Incredible work, guys. I'd love to hear more about how you came up with the idea of using a Kickstarter-like approach for this launch, and how you feel it's working out.
We just moved into SOMAcentral, which is a hot startup space in SoMa for 40 startups, most with private offices. The fine folks over there offered us a sweet way to lock & unlock our office door - a new YCombinator-funded startup called Lockitron (no info on their public website yet).
They have an alpha product that connects an iPhone app up to the door lock, allowing us to lock & unlock our office door from anywhere in the world.
It's pretty amazing and it's brand new; you won't find anything on the 'net about it yet, but it's real and we are using it!
Below is a video of Lockitron in action. If you're interested in getting this set up for your home or office just contact me and I'll introduce you to one of the founders.
Rob Lund dropped me a line recently about his cool app AgileTask.
Here's a screenshot -
So, I like the product overall. It works as advertised - it's super lightweight and you can start using it really quickly. There's humorous achievements you can unlock that keeps it light. I reckon this is useful and usable for people.
I like the product. It's fast. Very responsive. Elegant, intuitive interface.
