Core Before More
Make the core product excellent and defensible before expanding
- Difficulty
- Advanced
- Time to result
- ~months to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 97%
Before launching a new product, determine whether the existing product is truly excellent, durable, and defensible. Early traction can create false confidence, encouraging a company to divert attention toward additional products while customers still face serious problems in the core experience. Define readiness criteria based on customer satisfaction, retention, quality, and competitive resilience, then resolve material weaknesses before expanding. The rule does not require perfection; it requires enough focus to finish the original success and protect it from disruption. Expansion becomes appropriate when it builds on a strong foundation rather than compensating for stagnation, executive boredom, or hubris about the core business.
Origin
Extracted from Marketing Against The Grain's discussion of Airbnb's principle that companies should fix the core product and service before launching new products.
Core principles
- 01Initial success is not the same as a finished core product
- 02Unresolved core problems compound during expansion
- 03Focus creates quality and defensibility
- 04Expansion must not expose the core to disruption
- 05Intellectual honesty should precede roadmap ambition
How to run it
- 1
Define the core
State the primary customer, problem, promise, and experience that currently sustain the business.
Pro tip Use customer language rather than an internal product taxonomy.
Watch out Do not define every existing feature as part of the core.
- 2
Audit unfinished success
Identify serious usability, retention, reliability, and differentiation gaps that remain despite initial traction.
Pro tip Look for problems customers tolerate rather than problems they consider solved.
Watch out Revenue growth alone does not prove that the core is durable.
- 3
Evaluate distraction risk
Estimate which core improvements, people, and management attention the proposed expansion would displace.
Pro tip Model the opportunity cost over the full build-and-launch period.
Watch out Do not assume a new team eliminates executive and organizational distraction.
- 4
Strengthen the foundation
Fix the highest-impact core weaknesses and improve the product's long-term defensibility.
Pro tip Prioritize issues that affect both retention and competitive vulnerability.
Watch out Avoid using endless polishing as an excuse never to expand.
- 5
Apply readiness gates
Approve expansion only when predefined evidence shows the core can remain healthy while the company builds something new.
Pro tip Continue monitoring the core after expansion begins.
Watch out Do not waive readiness criteria because a new idea is fashionable.
In the wild
A SaaS company sees rapid acquisition and proposes an adjacent analytics product. Its audit shows that onboarding failures and weak retention still threaten the original workflow. The company postpones expansion, repairs activation and reliability, and establishes retention thresholds before funding the second product.
→ The original product becomes more durable, and the later expansion launches from a healthier customer and revenue base.
Common mistakes
Mistaking traction for completion
Early success can conceal serious weaknesses that become more dangerous after attention shifts elsewhere.
Expanding from hubris
Assuming nobody can improve on the core leaves an opening for a focused competitor.
Demanding literal perfection
The rule calls for a strong and defensible core, not infinite refinement that prevents all expansion.
Is it for you?
Best for
Companies considering a second product, major new service, or broad feature expansion after early success.
Not ideal for
Portfolio businesses intentionally testing multiple independent bets before product-market fit.
From the transcript
“you should never launch new products unless you have an incredible core product.”
“most companies fail because of a lack of focus and a lack of hubris, right?”
“We need to fix those before we go on and expand into something new.”
From the episode
Airbnb Just Copied Apple’s Product Development Strategy... Here’s Why (#138)