Testing demand cheaply.
WHY IT MATTERS
Building something nobody wants is the most expensive possible mistake.
WHAT VALIDATION IS NOT
Asking whether people like the idea.
WHY
People are encouraging, and encouragement is not evidence.
WHAT COUNTS AS EVIDENCE
Money A signed commitment Time spent, repeatedly An existing budget
WHAT TO DO FIRST
Talk to people with the problem.
WHAT TO ASK
What they do now What it costs them What they have tried What they pay for
WHAT NOT TO ASK
Whether they would use your product.
WHY
Hypothetical answers are unreliable.
WHAT TO TRY
Selling before building, with a clear description and a price.
WHAT THAT ESTABLISHES
Whether anyone pays.
WHAT A WAITING LIST PROVES
Interest, weakly.
WHAT A PREPAYMENT PROVES
Demand.
WHAT TO BUILD FOR VALIDATION
The smallest thing that delivers the outcome, even if it is manual behind the scenes.
WHAT MANUAL DELIVERY PROVIDES
Learning what the product must actually do, without building it.
WHAT TO STOP AND RECONSIDER ON
Repeated polite interest with no commitment.
