validation, prototiping and mvps in startup weekend
TRANSCRIPT
MVPs and prototyping
Wilhelm Lappe
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STARTUP… STARTUP… STARTUP…
STARTUP… STARTUP… STARTUP…
STARTUP… STARTUP… STARTUP…
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s Interviews
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sinterviews
get out of the building
the value of direct contact
feeling, improvise, non verbal communication
interact with humans
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sinterviews
interviews vs surveys
qualitative vs quantitative. What/how vs how many
we don’t need a statistical truth
on-line is dangerous
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swhat kind of people
You should interview your potential
customers and/or users
Your friend’s opinion doesn’t matter
Your grandma will always love the product
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sfinding people to interview
networking: 1st degree Linkedin contacts, your contact list
marketing actions: twitter/facebook followers,
landing page subscribers,…
cold calling: not the best way but…
if you can’t find people to have a coffee, how
do you want to get customers?
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sfinding people to interview
when you have 1-5 people it’s easier
ask for new introductions
people know similar people and usually they are
open to do an introduction
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sinterviews: tips
many people are not familiar with interviews
explain what you want to do: clarify you’re not
selling anything
try to add some value to them: I’ll tell you the results, I’ll
invite you to be a first user…
maybe you’re asking for a favor: invite to coffee
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sinterviews: tips
brief, ask for 20 min. It’s a coffee break
move to the place of the interviewee
maybe visiting your coworking is cool: use it
don’t pay for the interview: it affects the answers
and the profile
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sbad and good questions
What do you like? : cinema, theater….
What did you do yesterday? watched tv and ate
burgers
Ask about behaviors, not about ideas
People lie, at least they idealize themselves
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sdon’t be a seller
an interview is subjective by itself: try to avoid it
you’re not selling: get feedback
speak less, listen most of the time
taking notes is ok, writing everything is annoying
people don’t like to be recorded
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scultural issues
answers are different depending on the country: read
between the lines
Germans give honest feedback: and it hurts
Spaniards always agree with you (despite thinking
you’re crazy)
understand: yes, yes, YES, YES!!!!
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sdo it with a scientific method
setup fail/success criteria beforehand
fill the template for every single interview
that’s critical to understand different customer
segment criteria
analyze the data you get, not your feelings
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sit’s not terrible
This is the first time talking with your customers,
or at least with customers in this country
It’s demanding, and breaking the ice is difficult,
more speaking another language
But at the end it’s a very rewarding
experience
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s Interviews: problem interview
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sproblem interview
check the problem
• Talk about the problems: 3 problems – 1 story
• Rank the problem: troubles and pains
• pain level: must, nice, don’t need
• current alternatives
• New problems???
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sproblem interview: results
what must you have?
an identified early adopter: demographics
a worthy problem to be solved: must-have
how that’s solved now
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s Interviews: solution interview
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ssolution interview
check the problem and customer
show the solution: what do you have
discover the price: not easy
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ssolution interview: steps
demo: this is the key
show a solution for each problem
wait for questions
screenshots: which ones do you like, which ones
to remove
did you miss something?
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ssolution interview: steps
price: “is art”
would you like to use for free
tell the price
go top to bottom, something painful but
only a little
summarize : would you like to use the
beta, ask for more contacts?
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ssolution interview: results
what must you have?
an identified early adopter: demographics
a worthy problem to be solved: must-have
minimum features to solve it
a price the customer would like to/can pay
a business opportunity
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s MVPs
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sMain objective: learning
We can do it only with an experiment
• paper prototypes
• non functional prototypes
• mockups
• usability tests focused on one issue
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sMVP: techniques
Landing pages
• they are a “fake” product
• fake the “buy”, “reserve”, “pay”
• use SEM and spend 50€ to attract traffic
• create A/B tests
B2C is better than B2B
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sMVP: techniques
Crowdfunding or pre-sales are great, because
people speak with €€€€€€€€€€€€
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sMVP: techniques
prototype apps with coupons: big leap of faith
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sMVP: techniques
Do something manually before creating the
technology
• e-concierge: people know it’s manual, but you’re
learning
• mechanical Turk: people don’t realize it’s manual,
but it’s difficult to be real-time
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sMVP: techniques
prototyping hardware: functional vs design
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sMVP: techniques
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sMVP: fears
It’s simple but entrepreneurs create their
own barriers:
• it’s crappy
• I’ll damage the brand prestige
• the users can’t tell me what they want
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sMVP: challenges
It’s easier in digital than in real life and in
services than in products
• how to prototype restaurants or shops: pop-up stores,
corners….
• When your value is based on design and quality
• hardware: prototyping vs manufacturing
• B2B: not many chances to fail
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s Validation facts
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sbe sure you’re getting the right feedback
90% of people agree with you, 80% of the people will
pay you
It doesn’t happen in the real world
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sthe best one
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sactions show the truth
contracts, pre-contracts
appoitnments for a meeting (for B2B)
real users (if the pay it’s better)
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svanity metrics
phone
followers
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sShow me the money!!!!!
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Wilhelm Lappe @wlappe
www.emprelab.com - @emprelab
Wilhelm Lappe
Thanks!