Is your business idea really good?
“Sir, we are trying to build a centralized customer loyalty system by organizing all loyalty programs under one roof and an easy way to track and use them. Would you think this is a good idea? Are you going to use it if it comes out?”
“Yeah, definitely; why not.”
This was me one year ago, and now I know that motherfucker was lying to my face.
Well, if you are a startup enthusiast, you must know what Customer Discovery is and how important it is. It’s not wrong to say that it’s the most challenging part of a startup, and getting the wrong insights is not something anyone wants to do. You don’t want to build something that no one will use except you. There is no bad feedback in startups. It will stop you from wasting your time and money right now.
So, now let’s understand how to talk to a customer.
Talking to customers is based on a simple psychological approach. You don’t want to ask a biased question in which one is more aligned to say “yes” than “no” or vice-versa. Ask open-ended questions. Remember, if you are talking to an industry expert, things are different there.
During conversations, instead of directly pitching your idea, as I did, ask them about their general lifestyle and slowly take them to the point where your product/service is going to play a role someday. By this stage of the conversation, you will know whether you have space in this world to build a business or not. I have seen a lot of guys starting from idea A, and after taking it to the customers, they start solving idea B and build a startup out of it. That’s why they say, “Stick to the problem, not the solution.”
People often ask “Would you like it if we do this?” Startups don’t solve future problems today. Customers are going to say yes in most cases. DON’T ASK FUTURE QUESTIONS. Ask how often they have got frustrated from this problem or what was the last time they encountered it; if not, it’s not a real problem. Or see if they have ever tried anything else for the problem you are asking; if not, it’s not a problem for which they will pay.
Remember, ‘problems’ and ‘problems worth paying money for’ are two different things. And if someone doesn’t even have that problem and you ask, “If X happens, would you like to use Y (your product)?” This is terrible; move on. Don’t try to generate data; instead, collect real data. I mean, it’s a bit arguable if you are building a candy-type startup. But you get the idea.
But sometimes, you seriously get a lot of positive responses and commitments, and you overlook the product risk. You know what they say, “startups often overpromise and underdeliver.” But if you do deliver, money will come. So please have that level of confidence that you don’t become a victim of a product risk case.
Initially finding a customer to interview takes a lot of work. Still, general hacks that people try are friend’s friend, past company employees, college alum network, etc. Having a common ground is not necessary, but it helps sometimes. Also, B2B customer meetings are less and more challenging to schedule than B2C. In B2C, you get a lot of irreverent meetings, but in B2B, you can hit the hammer directly on the nail. And sometimes, during a conversation, entrepreneurs don’t even mention their idea or that they are doing a startup. You can have a lovely insightful chat without that too. You’ll often notice conversations before and after pitching the idea somewhat differ. Customers get biased with the solutions you have just proposed. So, IF YOU ARE PITCHING, know the right time and right customer to which you want to open up about your idea.
Remember, if you have pitched your idea in a meeting, then compliments are not what you are looking for, and please don’t ask for people’s opinions. Look through their day-to-day actions and find the problem instead of giving them a hypothetical situation. Customers will in general appreciate your idea. After a meeting, if you know the next meeting’s agenda, or if money is coming up in the equation, etc., then it symbolizes that the meeting was good.
But not every meeting is a good meeting, entrepreneurs often get confused about what exactly to ask in a meeting. The simple rule is to prepare some important questions beforehand and lead the conversation based on their answers. Talk less, listen more. And the more casual you keep it, the more comfortable they become in telling you about their problem.
Now, how many meetings? As a rule of thumb, keep having meetings until you start hearing the same stuff again. But with a lot of meetings, sometimes you dive into a vast space, which, I agree, is your customer segment, but maybe not today. Startups start small. First, make a hole and then use an earthmover to dig wide and deep.
But ALL this is only useful if you and your team are on the same page. Make notes in every meeting, discuss them with your team, and improve your questions, further strategies to move forward, and iterate.
Thanks for reading. The main idea of this blog is taken from the book “The Mom test.” The blog is a very high-level overview; if you really want to gain some good knowledge, read that book. This blog or that book is not a certificate that you are going to experience great interviews, but if you screw up, you will know, and once you know you are mistaken there will be space to improve.
