How can you determine if you've found a product-market fit through customer discovery?

In my experience, customer discovery is like detective work in the business world. This is where you put on your Sherlock Holmes hat, not to solve crimes, but to find out what your customers need. Think of it as a reality check for your hypotheses — a way to make sure you're not just building a product, but the right product.

All departments should be involved (depending on the issue). It's always good practice to pull in a target audience member to test the product.

Customer discovery interviews should be structured to provide a framework that prompts the customer to consider the problem. This captures the initial problems that the customer encounters. If the problem the entrepreneur or innovator is trying to solve emerges during a casual conversation, it's a strong indication that it's a prevalent issue among customers.

While not pitching your product, simply going in to discuss and gain insight about their needs, pains and behaviors leads to one of two things: 1) really generic answers; or 2)false reassurance of hypothesis. You need in concert with open-ended questions in these areas paint a picture of possibilities through questions like: what if you could do X; how would use the following product/service if you could have it; etc. Ultimately, there is an old adage in the brand marketing world "consumers can only tell your what they know". The same holds true in the b-2-b world. If you truly are innovating and disrupting you have to bring that to life for someone to react to and provide insight back.

Customer time is valuable and hard to get, so take your shots with them wisely. You want to build buy-in early, but also make sure you truly taking what they are saying and coming back with something they can buy and act on.

One thing I've found helpful is looking at product-market fit as a puzzle. The pieces? The feedback from your customers. Each piece of feedback helps you realize if your product truly fits the market picture, or if it's trying to squeeze into the wrong puzzle. It's not just about having a great product; it's about having a product that fits seamlessly into your customers' lives.

Once at work, we realized that customer discovery is an endless journey, not a destination. It's like having your finger on the pulse of a living, breathing market. You are constantly evolving and always surprised. Remember: what worked yesterday may not work tomorrow. So keep your ears open and be ready to twist, turn and jump!