DEV Community

Kay Kleinvogel
Kay Kleinvogel

Posted on

Day 5: The three steps to rapidly validate your startup idea on a shoestring budget.

3 steps to validate your startup like a pro:

1) Build a landing page: use it to assess the general interest in your product.

2) Build a protoype: give your customers something that helps them

3) Engage your customers: get feedback, and see where to improve


The significance of validating your idea

When developing your startup, validating your idea as soon as possible is critical!

Otherwise, you may spend time and money developing your product only to discover that there is no need for it and that no one wants to buy it.

Fortunately, you can easily create everything you need to validate your idea in a single day.

Step 1: create a landing page.

Your landing page will be your customer's first contact with your product, your product's face, and your most important marketing tool.

As a result, creating a landing page for your product should be your priority. Use it to explain the concept behind your product, what problems it solves, and how much it costs.

Then include a Call to Action to encourage people to sign up for your product. The best part is that you don't need a working product; simply use the landing page to assess general interest.

With a website builder, you can easily create a landing page in an hour, allowing you to get your idea out there as soon as possible.

Step 2: Create a simple prototype.

After your landing page has given your idea some traction, it's time to create a prototype for your customers.

You don't need a finished product at this stage, but it should be usable, solve the customers' pain points, and provide general value.

You can use no-code or low-code tools to create a prototype quickly. They enable you to quickly create a basic product without needing a developer.

At this stage of the product, another option I've seen is to do basic tasks by hand. Do whatever works best for your product.

Step 3: solicit feedback and iterate

Once you've gotten your first customers, it's time to gather feedback and improve your product.

Look at what parts of your applications your users enjoy. Is one feature used twice as much as others? Enhance it or make it easier to access. Is there a pattern of complaints? You now know what you should work on next.

Having a close relationship with your customers at this point may convert them into loyal fans of your product. They will then provide additional ideas and even discuss your product with others.

Simply put, engage with your customers. After all, they are the most likely to know what they think about your product.

Top comments (0)