Starting a business is hard, but getting momentum is harder. Many startups reach a critical point in their growth where they need momentum, and what do the founders do to get this momentum? That is where the story gets interesting. Here’s a little recap of when YouTube was at this crucial moment in its growth.

The most popular video sharing platform once struggled to find users

YouTube was not always what it is today. I dare say there was a time the founders of YouTube never knew the platform would get to the point it is today. But here we are. With over 2.6 users per month, YouTube has secured the number one spot as the most popular video-sharing platform in the world. Let’s dial back to the early beginning when all wasn’t so rosy.

In its early days, YouTube struggled to gain traction. One of the biggest challenges YouTube faced was getting people to upload videos. The platform needed a steady stream of content to attract viewers, but convincing regular users to create and share videos was difficult.

The founders—Chad Hurley, Steve Chen, and Jawed Karim—tried multiple approaches to encourage video uploads, including offering cash incentives. Nothing seemed to work.

They had to engineer momentum. One of their breakthroughs came when they started focusing on the dating niche. They positioned YouTube as a place to upload personal dating videos, even posting Craigslist ads to encourage users to share clips about themselves. While this idea didn’t take off as expected, it taught them a valuable lesson: People needed a compelling reason to use the platform.

Their next move was to remove friction. They made it incredibly easy to upload and share videos. Unlike other platforms that required users to download software, YouTube allowed uploads directly from a web browser, which was a game-changer.

Then, they found the right early adopters. YouTube’s biggest momentum shift happened when they noticed bloggers and MySpace users embedding videos to share music and personal moments. The founders capitalized on this by making embedding seamless, leading to a viral loop. Once people saw videos easily playable on blogs and social media, more people joined YouTube to watch and upload their content.

This wasn’t an overnight success.

Why momentum is important

Momentum is important for several reasons. It is the difference between a struggling startup and a thriving one. It’s what takes a company from being just another idea to a recognized brand with loyal customers. Without momentum;

• Your product remains invisible. Even if it’s great, no one will use it if they don’t know about it.
• You struggle to raise capital. Investors look for traction before committing funds.
• Growth feels like pushing a boulder uphill. You constantly have to convince every single new user to try your product.

Here’s why momentum is so important for startups:

It Creates Visibility - No matter how great your product is, if people don’t know about it, they won’t use it. Momentum helps get your brand in front of the right audience.

When a startup gains traction, word-of-mouth kicks in, media attention grows, and organic discovery increases. The more people hear about your company, the more difficult it is to ignore.

It Lowers Customer Acquisition Costs (CAC) - Startups often spend heavily on marketing in their early days to acquire users. Without momentum, this cost remains high. But when momentum builds, growth becomes more organic, and acquisition costs drop. Before momentum, you rely on expensive paid ads to bring in each new customer, but after gaining momentum, customers come to you through word-of-mouth, organic search, and referrals.

It Attracts Investors and Talent - Investors look for traction before putting money into a startup. Momentum is a sign of market demand, such a company becomes a magnet for investors in the same way that a top talent is drawn to companies that are gaining recognition and seem to be “going places.”

It Creates a Competitive Advantage - Startups are constantly racing against competitors. If you gain momentum first, it becomes harder for others to catch up. Market leaders often win simply because they move faster and establish themselves before competitors gain ground.

It Prevents Stagnation - A startup without momentum can feel like pushing a boulder uphill. You constantly struggle to attract users, investors, and partners. Growth feels slow, and motivation within the team drops. But when momentum kicks in, things move faster, morale improves, and success starts to feel inevitable.

It Leads to Exponential Growth - Startups don’t grow linearly; they grow exponentially once they hit the right tipping point. The challenge is getting past the initial slow growth phase. Once momentum builds, growth compounds as more users, investors, and partners get involved.

So how do you get momentum for your startup?

1. Remove Barriers to Adoption

People are lazy. If your product requires too much effort to start using, many will give up before even trying it. Make adoption seamless.

Example: Slack exploded in popularity because it required zero setup. Unlike traditional business software, Slack could be tested in minutes.

Tip: Eliminate unnecessary steps from your onboarding process. Reduce friction.

2. Leverage Existing Platforms

Instead of trying to build your audience from scratch, piggyback on platforms where your target users already exist.

Example: YouTube grew by embedding videos on MySpace. TikTok used Instagram and Twitter for distribution.

Tip: Identify where your audience hangs out and integrate your product into those spaces.

3. Create a Viral Growth Loop

Give users a reason to share your product naturally. This could be through social sharing, referral incentives, or built-in network effects.

Example: Dropbox offered free storage for every friend a user invited, turning existing users into marketers.

Tip: Incentivize sharing through rewards, gamification, or exclusive features.

4. Focus on Niche Communities First

Instead of trying to appeal to everyone, win over a small, dedicated group.

Example: Reddit didn’t start as a massive platform. It focused on specific communities like tech and gaming before expanding.

Tip: Pick a niche where you can dominate before scaling to a broader audience.

5. Be Consistently Visible

Momentum doesn’t build itself. You need to show up consistently and keep reminding people your brand exists.

Example: Elon Musk’s companies (Tesla, SpaceX) stay in the news because he’s always talking about them.

Tip: Post regularly on social media, write blog content, appear on podcasts, or use PR to keep your brand top of mind.

Final Thoughts

Momentum isn’t something that happens by accident—it’s something you create. Startups that succeed create momentum by engaging early adopters, leveraging existing platforms, and engineering viral growth, amongst other strategies. If you can build momentum, everything else—customers, funding, and market dominance—becomes significantly easier.

Further reading - How Transparency Turned A Crisis Into An Opportunity

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