Chapter 2 of 10All chapters
Chapter 2 of 10
Testing the idea
Evidence before building.
The riskiest assumption
List what must be true for this to work, pick the one most likely to be false, and test that first. Usually it is that enough people care, not that it can be built.
- A landing page, a manual service or a pre-order tests demand without a product.
- Concierge and wizard-of-oz approaches deliver the value by hand first.
Honest signals
Compliments are not evidence. Payment, a signed commitment, a deposit or repeated use are. Ask about what people currently do rather than about your idea.