Ross Chayka. How to validate your startup/product idea?

1. How to validate
startup / product idea?
Ross Chayka
linkedin.com/in/rchayka
fb.com/rostyslav.chayka

2. Audience
● Startup founders
● Product managers
● Entrepreneurs

3. About me
● Ross Chayka
● Lviv Startup Club - Founder & CEO
● Lemberg Tech Business School - Founder & CEO
● Associated Coach Practitioner by RCG

4. About you
● City
● Startup / Product
● Validation challenge

5. Agenda
● Why validation is so important ?
● 5 validation stages
● Validation for every type of product idea
● Validation metrics
● Work in groups
● 9 most impressive startup pivots
● Validation on late stages
● Q&A

6. Online master-class code of conduct
● Duration - 1.5 hour
● Video ON, Audio OFF
● Registration with NAME
● One person speaking
● Question in chat or raise your hand or show sign

7. Innovator’s Dilemma

8. Startup mantra
● Fail Fast
● Killer Feature
● Growth Model
● Business Model

9. Early versions of famous startups
● Instagram - Burbn
● Slack - Glitch Game
● Twitter - Odeo podcasts
● YouTube - dating site
● Shopify - snowdevil
● Groupon - The Point
● Flickr - game Neverending
● Netflix - DVD mail order
● Airbnb - housing for conferences
● Nintendo - play cards

14. Market validation
● Is there enough customers?
● Target audience
● Tools: Statistics
● Tools: Research
● Personas creation

17. Market Validation Metrics
● 15% of Target Audience if enough

18. Validation for every type of product idea
# New markets
- new product in new market
# Solve your problem
#Do it better
- new product in existing market
# Copy solutions
- new country
- new industry
- new domain
- sub niche
- new business model

19. False negative
● Copycats in less developed markets
● Base technology absence

20. Problem validation
● Do your customers have a problem?
● Tools:
○ Interviews
○ Surveys
○ Wait lists
○ Ads

21. Survey questions
● What is the biggest challenge at your work?
● If I would a wizard what would you wish?
● What problem do you have that could be solved by tech?
● How much are you gonna pay for magic solution ?
● How much do you already pay for solution?

22. Validation for every type of product idea
# New markets
- new product in new market
# Solve your problem
#Do it better
- new product in existing market
# Copy solutions
- new country
- new industry
- new domain
- sub niche
- new business model

23. Problem Validation Metrics
● Money paid for solution
● Wait list size & growth
● Ad conversion

24. False Negative
● Vitamin startups

25. ”Product/market fit means being in a good market
with a product that can satisfy that market.”
Marc Andreessen .

26. Product - Market Fit
● Will customers use your product ?
● Tools:
○ Surveys
○ Interviews
○ Competitors analysis
○ Landings with features
○ Wait List
○ Wait list advertisement
○ Customer videos
○ Fake products

27. Survey questions
● How would you feel if you could no longer use the products?
● What type of people do you think would most benefit from the product?
● What is the main benefit you receive from the product?
● How can we improve the products for you?

28. Validation for every type of product idea
# New markets
- new product in new market
# Solve your problem
#Do it better
- new product in existing market
# Copy solutions
- new country
- new industry
- new domain
- sub niche
- new business model

29. Product - Market Fit Metrics
● Absence Disappointing > 40%
● Churn (product <> solution)
● Media startups:
○ Time on site
○ Daily returning visitors
● Problem solving oriented metrics

30. Features Validation
● What features are critical for product?
● Tools:
○ Surveys
○ A/B tests
● MVP
● Metrics:
○ Conversions between versions
○ Use usage metrics in A/B tests

31. Onboarding Validation
● How easy your customers understand value of your product?
● Tools:
○ Personal onboarding
○ Recorded sessions
○ Surveys
○ Interviews
● Metrics:
○ Bounce rate

32. Product Creation Validation
● Could you build product that would be a solutions?
● Is there other intellectual property in your product?

33. Business Model Validation
● Would customers pay for your product?
● Would it be enough money to build company?
● Tools:
○ Free samples
○ Freemium model A/B Tests
○ Discounts

34. Validation for every type of product idea
# New markets
- new product in new market
# Solve your problem
#Do it better
- new product in existing market
# Copy solutions
- new country
- new industry
- new domain
- sub niche
- new business model

35. Business Model Metrics
● Pricing plans
● Customer LTV > Customer Support Cost
● Finance metrics (ROI > interest rates, etc..)

36. False Negative
● Twitter

37. Growth Model Validation
● Could you get to know your customers about your product?
● Growth Hacking

38. Validation for every type of product idea
# New markets
- new product in new market
# Solve your problem
#Do it better
- new product in existing market
# Copy solutions
- new country
- new industry
- new domain
- sub niche
- new business model

39. Growth Metrics
● CLV > CAC
● NPS (Net promoter score)
● Virality
● Brand
● Churn

40. False Negative
● WeWork

41. Famous startup growth rates
● Instagram: 2 hours: 10K, first week - 100K, second week - 100K
● Slack: first week - 10 000, 3 month - 50 000
● Twitter:
● YouTube - dating site
● Shopify - snowdevil
● Groupon - The Point
● Flickr - game Neverending
● Netflix - DVD mail order
● Airbnb - housing for conferences
● Nintendo - play cards

43. Questions ?

44. Contacts
linkedin.com/in/rchayka
fb.com/rostyslav.chayka
rchayka@gmail.com