Issue 27

July 2, 2024

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How to Validate a Business Idea

In part one of this series, I shared a few ways that you can find business ideas. Then I mentioned a few methods you can use to pick an idea. Now that we’ve gone over idea discovery, let’s focus on validation.

I’d like to share three steps with you that have helped me validate ideas.

There’s nothing more valuable than time. If you follow these steps, you should be able to confirm your idea in weeks, not months. And you can answer yes or no to the following question — Should I invest more time and energy into this idea?

1 - Create a landing page

Once you select an idea to work on, you can start validating it immediately. I recommend creating a simple landing page with an email form. I use ConvertKit and Carrd for this.

Here are the benefits of a landing page:

• You can share details about your idea
• You can capture email addresses from potential customers
• You can measure traffic to your landing page

After you launch your landing page, tell people about it. Add the link to your social media bios. Post about it. Mention it on your blog or newsletter. Send a direct message or email to your close connections and friends.

Do this for two weeks. Then take a look at the numbers. How many email addresses did you collect? How many people viewed the landing page? What was the engagement rate on your posts about the idea? This is priceless data that you can use to start validating your idea.

Another element to consider adding to your landing page is a pre-order button. This requires hooking up a payment provider like Lemon Squeezy or Stripe. If you do add the button, keep this in mind:

• Give customers a soft launch date
  • People will be more likely to buy it if they know when they can use it
• Make the price point a steal based on your offer
  • Think $25, not $250. You want to make your offer a no-brainer.
• Remember that you can always refund your customers
  • Don’t worry if your idea doesn’t work out. That’s what refunds are for.

2 - Listen, listen, listen

If you haven’t read The Mom Test yet, you’re missing out. It’s a phenomenal book about how to validate your ideas through conversations.

I don’t want to reveal all its valuable advice, but I will share one piece that stuck with me. The author says not to talk about your idea in the first conversation. This sounds counterproductive, but when you realize why, it makes sense.

Strangers often say what you want to hear when you share ideas with them. They’re polite and complimentary. But that doesn’t help you validate your idea. Instead, have the person tell you a story related to your idea. Write down the facts. This information will be invaluable as you seek to validate your idea.

The central theme of the book is to listen more than you talk. The truth is people are busy. If you manage to get thirty minutes with a potential customer, you’ll want to learn as much as possible. And you can’t do that if you’re doing all the talking. Ask your questions and then pay attention to their answers.

3 - Collect feedback

Now it’s time to reap the rewards from your hard work in steps one and two. Remember those email addresses you collected from your landing page? How about the conversations you had with potential customers? You can convert some of those people into beta users.

The best way to validate an idea is to get feedback from real customers. Go back and read that sentence again. If you learn one thing from this issue, let it be that.

Not everyone who joins your waitlist will want to beta-test your product. Neither will everyone you have a conversation with. And that’s okay. The truth is you only need a couple of people.

Did someone stand out in your conversations? Do you have an early fan who’s excited about your idea? Ask them to become a beta user. Give them a discount on your SaaS in exchange for their feedback.

Feedback from beta users can help you:

• Get clarity on what works and doesn’t work
• Discover new features to consider building
• Validate your idea

A successful beta program will enable you to make a decision. Did you get enough validation to keep going with your idea? If so, use the feedback to refine your MVP and move forward with a launch. If not, you might want to seek more validation before you go all in with your idea. Or even consider working on another idea.

You built a landing page and listened to potential customers. And you gathered feedback from beta users. The results (and your gut feeling) should be evident. What you decide to do next is up to you.

Some ideas might be harder to build, but easier to sell. Other ideas might be easier to build, but harder to market and find customers. And remember this — your passion and skills can also play a role in whether your idea fails or succeeds.

Before you devote all your resources to your next project, take a step back and look at the big picture. Review what you’ve done and learned so far. And make the best decision for you based on the information you have.

If you’re still stuck and can’t decide, let me know. I’m happy to listen and give you some feedback. Feel free to click reply or contact me on X. And if these steps helped you make a decision, I’d like to hear from you too.

Thanks for reading this week. See you next week! 👋

David Weiss Founder • Made by DW ​Follow me on X, LinkedIn, & Instagram​

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