Talking to Customers to Get Validation

The #1 reason startups fail is building something nobody wants. Customer validation is how you avoid this fate. It's not optional. It's the most important work you'll do before writing a single line of code.

Why Customer Validation Matters

Most founders skip validation because they're excited to build. They assume they understand the problem because they've experienced it themselves. This is a trap.

Your experience is not representative. Your friends are too polite to tell you your idea is bad. Your mom thinks everything you do is brilliant. None of this is validation.

Before You Build Anything

The goal of early customer validation is to answer three questions:

1. Does the problem exist? Are people actually experiencing the pain you think they have?
2. Is it painful enough? Do they care enough to pay for a solution, or is it just a minor annoyance?
3. Are they actively looking for solutions? If they're not already trying to solve this, they probably won't pay you to solve it either.

The Mom Test

The best framework for customer interviews comes from Rob Fitzpatrick's book "The Mom Test." The core insight: don't ask people if your idea is good. Instead, ask about their life, their problems, and their existing behavior.

Questions That Actually Work

• "Tell me about the last time you experienced [problem]."
• "What have you tried to solve this?"
• "What don't you like about your current solution?"
• "How much time/money does this problem cost you?"
• "If you could wave a magic wand, what would the ideal solution look like?"

For a complete guide to running effective interviews, see How to Interview Potential Customers.

How Many Interviews Is Enough?

There's no magic number, but here's a good rule of thumb: keep interviewing until you stop learning new things. This usually happens somewhere between 10-20 conversations.

If every interview teaches you something completely new, you haven't done enough. If you can predict what someone will say before they say it, you've probably done enough.

Signs You Have Validation

Strong Signals

• People ask how they can sign up or buy
• They offer to pay before you even have a product
• They introduce you to others with the same problem
• They've already spent money trying to solve this
• They get emotional when describing the problem

Weak Signals

• "That sounds cool" or "I'd probably use that"
• Generic positive feedback
• Suggestions for features (without expressing real pain)
• "My friend would love this"

Common Mistakes

1. Only Talking to Friends and Family

Your network will tell you what you want to hear. Cold outreach to strangers is uncomfortable but essential.

2. Leading the Witness

"Don't you think it's annoying when...?" is not a real question. You're just asking them to agree with you.

3. Pitching Instead of Listening

Customer interviews are for learning, not selling. If you're talking more than 20% of the time, you're doing it wrong.

4. Stopping Too Early

Five interviews is not enough. Neither is ten if they're all with the same type of person. Seek out diversity in your conversations.

What Comes Next

Once you have validation that the problem exists and people want a solution, you can start thinking about what to build. But even then, start small. Build the smallest possible thing that lets you learn whether your solution actually works.