How I've Improved Ideas Validations and Get Real Feedback From Customers.

What a brilliant idea! As a creative, you've probably heard that a lot. You pitch your ideas to coworkers, employees, and customers, but are they giving you the hard truth you need to validate your idea?

As you gaze at your reflection in the mirror, you realize that you understand your customers' daily routines, their struggles, and what keeps them up at night. You've already solved one of their problems, but you're determined to tackle even more. To accomplish this, you've established a comprehensive feedback gathering system, closely monitored by your customer success team, and the results have been overwhelmingly positive with all indicators pointing towards success!

Are you tired of putting in effort and not seeing the results you were hoping for? Are you questioning if growth is meant for other businesses and not yours?

Stop overthinking and go back to them with a different approach!?

I've conducted numerous customer interviews, project meetings, brainstorming sessions, and feedback polls, and let me tell you, sometimes the answers you get aren't always what you expect or deserve.

Running a business is all about creating value and solving problems for your customers. But how do you know if you're really hitting the mark??

You might get a lot of support and positive feedback, but that doesn't necessarily mean your customers will buy your new product. It's like your mom telling you everything you do is great, but you need to know the truth. So how can you ensure you're really solving their problems and creating that virtuous cycle of growth?

I borrowed this golden nugget from the book "The Mom Test" by Rob Fitzpatrick, and I highly recommend giving it a read, even if you're not currently involved in developing a new product. The insights you'll gain will help you cut through the noise and get to the heart of what really matters for your business.

Here are some key takeaways from the book that I have personally applied, starting with MY most challenging one:

1. Talk less, listen more: Don't pitch your idea to customers. Instead, ask open-ended questions and listen carefully to their responses.
2. Don't ask hypothetical/open-ended questions: Avoid questions like "Would you use this product if it had this feature?" Instead, focus on their current behavior and problems they are currently facing.
3. Don't rely on compliments: People often say nice things to avoid hurting your feelings, but that won't help you improve your product. Question more!?
4. Look for patterns: Don't take one person's feedback as gospel. Look for patterns across multiple conversations.
5. Test early and often: Don't wait until you have a finished product to start testing. Get feedback early and iterate quickly.

Build your questionnaire to gain insights that will help shape the product or service, rather than simply trying to confirm preconceived notions.?

The book provides tips and tricks to avoid mistakes when talking to customers, such as getting biased feedback. It also shares methods to test ideas, find the right people to talk to, and ask the right questions based on their role and expertise.?

Plus: it’s a short read!