@andreasklinger

ActionableCustomer Developmentfor StartupsWorkshop Outline

#emminvest @andreasklinger

@andreasklinger

Startup Founder, Product GuyDone lots of customer interviews

#emminvest @andreasklinger

What we will cover - Basics of Customer Development- Dos and Donts of Customer Interviews- Custdev Process for Teams

This is a short version of a 5h product development workshop i usually run with startups.

@andreasklinger

Startup Founder, Product GuyDone lots of customer interviews

@andreasklinger

Part I:Customer Development Basics

Startups have ideas.

Build it.

Customers dont buy it.

The startup dies.

Promote it.

@andreasklinger

tract

ion

time

We want this.

@andreasklinger

tract

ion

time

We get this.

@andreasklinger

#emminvest @andreasklinger

The Biggest Risk of a Startup?

#emminvest @andreasklinger

The Biggest Risk of a Startup?

Time/Money? No You will learn a lot + huge network gain.

#emminvest @andreasklinger

Wasting your talent & opportunity by building the wrong thing close to the right thing.

The Biggest Risk of a Startup?

Market

Your Solution

Customer Job/ProblemWilling to pay

To miss your opportunity. By focusing on the wrong thing.

@andreasklinger

Market

Customer Job/ProblemWilling to pay

competitor

competitor

competitor

competitor

Your Solution

Other Market

Customer

Job/Problem

Willing to pay

Or by looking at the wrong customer.

@andreasklinger

Startups dont fail because they lack a product; they fail because they lack customers and a profitable business model Steve Blank

And it might have been where you didnt look.

@andreasklinger

#emminvest @andreasklinger

Customer Development - Startups have stages.

#emminvest @andreasklinger

Customer Development - Startups have stages.

Discovery

tract

ion

time

Validation Efficiency Scale

Lets simplify this

@andreasklinger

Discovery

tract

ion

time

Validation Efficiency Scale

Product/Market Fit

Find a product the market wants.

@andreasklinger

Discovery

tract

ion

time

Validation Efficiency Scale

Product/Market Fit

Find a product the market wants.

Scale a company around that product

@andreasklinger

Discovery

tract

ion

time

Validation Efficiency Scale

Product/Market Fit

Find a product the market wants.

Scale a company around that product

We will focus on this part

@andreasklinger

Discovery Validation Here be dragons

Try again. Pivot

@andreasklinger

Learn Confirm

Try again. Pivot

@andreasklinger

Learn ConfirmFind a problem worth solving.

Find a potential solution.Validate that this solution works.Validate a business model.

@andreasklinger

The hard part is finding the problem to solve.Kevin Systrom

http://ecorner.stanford.edu/authorMaterialInfo.html?mid=2738

@andreasklinger

When i say problems i mean Jobs to be Done

Watch: http://bit.ly/cc-jtbd

Job to Be Done Products are bought because they solve a job to be done.

Therefore not every problem is negative.

@andreasklinger

Question

- I am generation digital- I never read paper newspapers- I would never buy a tabloid

Still: I take a metro newspaper in the London subway and read it begin to end while traveling.

Why?

@andreasklinger

Question

- I am generation digital- I never read paper newspapers- I would never buy a tabloid

Still: I take a metro newspaper in the London subway and read it begin to end while traveling.

Why?

No reception. Travel of 20 minutes.

Customers have a Job to be done in mind before they see your product.

@andreasklinger

Customers have a Job to be done in mind before they see your product.

@andreasklinger

Understanding that job enables product niching.

Learn ConfirmFind a problem worth solving.

Find a potential solution.Validate that this solution works.Validate a business model.

@andreasklinger

Validating Problem

Validating Solution

We do this in two steps.

Do they care?Do they need it?

Do they have budget for it?Who really is they?

Does our solution solve their problem?Do they understand our solution?Would they pay for it?

@andreasklinger

How to know what customers want?

Just go and ask them.@andreasklinger

If i had asked my customers what they wanted, they would have said 'a faster horse'Henry Ford

Henry Ford asked wrong.

@andreasklinger

@andreasklinger

Part II:Customer Interviews

The hardest things in customer interviews:

Knowing who is your customer.

Ask them the right way.

Understand their feedback.

Iterate or Kill your idea.

@andreasklinger

Good or bad questions?

@andreasklinger

from Europes #1 Custdev Expert @robfitz.Watch Robs talk: http://bit.ly/rf-custdev I only took the liberty to make them worse by adding clutter and changing his face to mine.

THE FOLLOWING SLIDES ARE ALL STOLEN.

DISC

LAIMER

@andreasklinger

Us

Do you have a problem with X?

Us

Do you have a problem with X?

You are young and got an oscar. Are you worried about peaking your career too soon?

Uuh. Well now I am! - Jennifer Lawrence

@andreasklinger

Us

Tell me about X.

Us

Tell me about X.

Us

Do you think its a good idea?

Us

Do you think its a good idea?

Us

Would you buy a product which solved this problem?

Us

Would you buy a product which solved this problem?

Us

How do you currently deal with this problem?

Us

How do you currently deal with this problem?

Us

Talk me through the last time you had this problem

Us

Talk me through the last time you had this problem

Us

How much would you pay for this?

Us

How much would you pay for this?

Us

How much money does this problem cost you?

Us

How much money does this problem cost you?

Us

Is there a budget for it?

Us

Is there a budget for it?

Us

Who else should I talk to?

Us

Who else should I talk to?

Good questions:

- Did or Do - NEVER Would- Dont assume preset (e.g. problems)

- Dont ask for opinions but let them speak about real examples/experiences.

The Perfect Question

The Mother Test - (c) @robfitzAsk in a way that your mother could tell you that

your product is useless. Without her knowing.

So we had a meeting

Understanding Feedback

Claudia

Sounds great. I love it!

Claudia

Sounds great. I love it!

Only validates she is human.

Jeremy

Brilliant -- let me know when it launches!

Jeremy

Brilliant -- let me know when it launches!

Compliment + Stalling tactic They dont care

Jeremy

There are a couple people I can intro you to, when youre ready.

Jeremy

There are a couple people I can intro you to, when youre ready.

WHY NOT NOW?

Claudia

I would definitely buy that!

Claudia

I would definitely buy that!

DANGEROUS! PEOPLE CANNOT PREDICT

THEIR OWN BEHAVIOUR.

Jeremy

We are spending 500$ per month on this :(

Jeremy

We are spending 500$ per month on this :(

Awesome feedback!Proofs it is a problem, they

kind of solved it, and shows their budget availability.

Opinions are worthless.

We look for: - facts about their life/work

- and commitments- Think VS Do

@andreasklinger

@andreasklinger

Part III:Process of Customer Interviews

First:

Know what you want to learn (riskiest assumptions)

@andreasklinger

Process:

Find customers > Validate Problem > Validate Solution > Learn & Iterate

Finding Customers

Define customer segments - as focused as possible - as few as possible

Find 5-10 customers in each segment.

Finding Customers

Experts Advisors Advocates Prospects Customers

Your relationship with them changes over time:

Validate Problem

Define Assumptions about their Problem

Define Assumptions about current solutions

@andreasklinger

Split in different customer segments if needed

Validate Problem

#emminvest @andreasklinger

Create Topic Maps

Group your assumptions to Topics.

Define non-leading Questions:Eg. people want to connect with fashion labelsHow do you ask that?Do you want to connect is leading.Which fashion brands do you know?Why do you like them?Oh thats interesting. How did you find out about that?Ah via facebook?... etc.

Action.

Get in groups and create topic maps, customer segments and non leading questions

@andreasklinger

Validate Problem The Interviews

Dont be awkward:- We are looking for Expert Feedback or Doing a Survey - not: We do Customer Development- Ask open questions.- Let them speak.- Let them be the expert. (Ask naive)- In person. No skype, no online surveys, no phone, no email.

Dont do more interviews if feedback repeats. (No new learnings)

@andreasklinger

Validate Problem The Interviews

Second person takes notes- No laptop- Use IndexCards or Postits.- Write down exact customer phrase

- Use Visual indicators ---------------->

Ask for further intros.Ask Is there anything you think i should have asked.

@andreasklinger

NEVER DELEGATE INTERVIEWS

- Interviews should be done by the product-deciders.- Especially if they hate sales. (they need to learn it)

@andreasklinger

Action.

Test run interviews.

Group into people who like ice-cream.And people who want to build a unique ice-cream startup idea.

@andreasklinger

Validate Problem Review

Review in the team- Use exact wording by customer- Understand their answers in their context- Dont try to be correct with your assumptions- See what you learned.

@andreasklinger

Source: Custdev.com#emminvest @andreasklinger

Validate Problem Review

- Write down new learnings (or new assumptions)- See which old assumptions turned out to be wrong or right.- Adapt your solution.

Source: Custdev.com

Validate Solution

- Come back to interviewees- Focus first on their current solution.- Discuss flaws of their current solution.- Show mockups, screens, interactive demos.- Get improvement feedback.- Get them to commit.- Or iterate.

If it solves a problem you dont need to sell (much)

@andreasklinger

If you were wrong. Be happy.

Several of the biggest startup successes started out wrong.

You still have money, team and energy to iterate or pivot.

Summary

- Know what you want to learn.- Narrow your customer segment- Formulate your assumptions.- Define biggest questions (topic map).- Ask non leading, open questions.- Ask about experience not opinions.- Understand their feedback in their context.- Filter Nice Human Behaviour and Opinions.- Adapt with your learnings. Iterate your product.

TL;DR: Use custdev to doublecheck your assumptions and product. Never bias in customer interviews.

@andreasklinger

Read on

Highly recommended:Rob Fitzpatricks Collection of best Custdev Videos - @robfitz

http://www.hackertalks.io

@andreasklinger

Tweet & share

@andreasklinger

If you like this presentation, please tweet about it:Actionable Customer Development for Startups - A workshop by @andreasklinger - slides: http://www.slideshare.net/andreasklinger/actionable-customer-development

Thank you :)

@andreasklingerMore presentations: www.slideshare.net/andreasklinger