The Start:

Ivan Zhao and Simon Last, the co-founders of Notion, had a shared passion for design and software development.

Before starting Notion, Ivan had a background in product design and had previously worked at Inkling, a digital publishing company, where he honed his skills in creating user-centric products.

Simon, a talented programmer, shared Ivan's vision of creating a more flexible and intuitive productivity tool. Their combined expertise set the stage for developing Notion.

The Problem:

Ivan and Simon recognized the fragmented nature of productivity tools, where users had to juggle multiple apps for note-taking, task management, project planning, and collaboration.

They saw an opportunity to create an all-in-one solution that would simplify workflows and enhance productivity.

With Notion, they aimed to develop a highly customizable, integrated workspace that could adapt to various user needs, ultimately transforming how individuals and teams organized their work and ideas.

Getting their first customers:

In March 2016, nearly a year after restarting the development of Notion, Ivan and Simon launched the product on Product Hunt, with Naval Ravikant promoting it.

The launch turned out to be one of the most successful of 2016, attracting thousands of people to the Notion website to sign up and try the new product.

That same month, David Pierce published a complimentary article about the app in the Wall Street Journal.

They also utilized affiliates and product-led growth strategies to create scalable growth loops.

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