BUS-217: week 2
Build something people want
If you don’t do that, then nothing else matters.
We’ve all seen examples of companies that invest a lot of money in developing and launching a new product, only to have it fail. I hate to admit it, but, I’ve done it myself. So how do make sure we’re building something customers love? The short answer is this: The only thing that matters is getting to Product-Market Fit. There are several frameworks today – Customer Development, MVP, Lean Startup, and Design Thinking – that are all designed to get you to Product-Market Fit more effectively and efficiently.
“In a startup, no facts exist inside the building, only opinions”.
-Steve Blank
Lecture:
Room Lecture Capture Video from Canvas.
View my slides as a PDF.
Main Reading:
Other Reading:
- MVP – A misunderstood concept.
- Doing CustDev Interviews Right
- Case Study: Juicero
- Asking for an NDA makes you look like an amateur.
Get your Canvas:
Discussion
- What failed products have you witnessed? What learnings have you observed? Discuss on Slack.
Assignment:
- What process will you use to get your startup to Product-Market Fit? Customer Development interviews? Build an MVP? Write a paragraph about how you will get to PMF and post to the #path-to-pmf channel (you’ll see my example there).
Founder Interview:
- Charlene Platon, founder of Fifth Window (and BUS-217 alum!) talks about conducting a Customer Development process for her startup. Listen now.