Lean Startups aren’t Cheap Startups

First, the title makes it sound like a treatise on Christian mysticism. If you're such a great marketer, how come you can't name your own book? Second, I've never seen such bad editing (I am not exaggerating). If I were one of the people thanked for proofreading the book I would have either (a) asked for my name to be deleted or (b) done my job. Third, the book is as stilted and processy as his blog is lively and addictive: if your idea of fun is diagrams connecting step 3a with step 4c, dig in. It reminds me of those old photographs where (presumably) warm, funny people would get dressed up in uncomfortable Sunday suits and stare stiffly at the camera because they thought they were supposed to be serious. Fourth, the book doesn't connect its ideas with other work. This diminishes its value; it would be easier to understand if it pointed to other things and explained where it differs. Particularly useful would have been how it differs from Crossing the Chasm and the product-adoption lifecycle. As best as I can figure out, the main difference is that it focuses on how to acquire (paying) early adopters so that you have a chance of later hitting the mainstream. In other words, it's about reaching the chasm in the first place. (Hey, maybe that would have been a good title.) But even with something as basic as that, I'm left wondering if I'm getting it right.

As I said, I'm a big fan. :)

Edit: I mean that. This stuff is so important that I wish Blank would write a good book, in his own wonderful voice (as evidenced on the blog), to really get it across. I volunteer to proofread.