I've seen too many founders (including myself in earlier ventures) jump straight into building without validating their assumptions. It's tempting to start coding immediately when you have an idea that excites you, but most startup failures happen because people build things nobody actually wants. Here are some practical approaches I've learned for testing ideas before investing months of development time.
Brutal truth: Most of us are terrible at predicting what people actually want. Validation helps us fail fast and cheap instead of slow and expensive.
The Problem with "Build It and They Will Come"
The biggest risk for any startup isn't technical - it's building something people don't want. Yet many of us skip validation because it feels less exciting than coding. We tell ourselves we're different, that our idea is obviously needed, that we understand our users better than they understand themselves.
I've been guilty of this myself. There's something seductive about diving into architecture decisions and technology choices. It feels productive. But it's often just expensive procrastination.
Signs You're Avoiding Validation
- • Spending weeks choosing the perfect tech stack
- • Obsessing over features nobody has asked for
- • Building in isolation without talking to potential users
- • Assuming you know what people want
- • Feeling like validation would slow you down
Healthy Validation Mindset
- • Eager to be proven wrong early
- • Curious about user behavior vs assumptions
- • Comfortable with small experiments
- • Values learning over being right
- • Sees validation as acceleration, not delay
Start with the Riskiest Assumptions
Every startup idea has multiple assumptions baked in. The key is identifying which ones, if wrong, would kill your business. Focus your validation efforts there first.
Common Risky Assumptions to Test
Problem Assumptions
- • People actually experience this problem
- • The problem is painful enough to pay for a solution
- • Current solutions are inadequate
- • People actively look for solutions
Solution Assumptions
- • Your approach actually solves the problem
- • People will change their current behavior
- • The solution is better than alternatives
- • People can figure out how to use it
Market Assumptions
- • Enough people have this problem
- • They have money to spend on solutions
- • You can reach them cost-effectively
- • They trust new solutions from unknown companies
Practical Validation Techniques
1. Problem Interview Method
Before building anything, talk to potential users about their problems. The goal isn't to pitch your solution - it's to understand their world.
Sample Interview Questions
- • "Tell me about the last time you experienced [problem]"
- • "How do you currently handle this situation?"
- • "What's the most frustrating part about [current solution]?"
- • "If you had a magic wand, how would you solve this?"
- • "How much time/money does this problem cost you?"
⚠️ Interview Anti-Patterns:
- • Leading questions that push toward your solution
- • Asking hypothetical "would you use..." questions
- • Talking more than listening
- • Only interviewing friends and family
2. Landing Page Validation
Create a simple landing page that describes your solution and measures interest. This is faster and cheaper than building the actual product.
Essential Landing Page Elements
- • Clear headline describing the problem you solve
- • Benefits focused on user outcomes, not features
- • Call-to-action (email signup, "notify me when ready", etc.)
- • Social proof if you have any
- • Simple, professional design
Drive traffic through social media, relevant communities, or small ads. Track conversion rates and talk to people who sign up to understand their motivation.
3. Concierge MVP Approach
Deliver your service manually before automating it. This helps you understand the real workflow and edge cases before committing to a technical architecture.
Examples of Concierge Validation
- • Manual curation instead of algorithmic recommendations
- • Spreadsheet-based workflows before building automation
- • Personal consultation calls before self-service tools
- • Email-based processes before web applications
4. Prototype Testing
Build the smallest possible version that demonstrates your core value proposition. Focus on the essential workflow, not polish.
Prototype Guidelines
- • One core feature that solves the main problem
- • Manual processes behind the scenes are fine
- • Ugly but functional beats beautiful but incomplete
- • Focus on user workflow, not edge cases
- • Set clear expectations about prototype limitations
Making Sense of Validation Results
Positive Signals
Strong Evidence
- • People offer to pay before you ask
- • Users adopt workarounds to keep using your prototype
- • Organic word-of-mouth growth
- • Users contact you asking when it'll be ready
Weak Evidence
- • "That's a great idea!" (but no action)
- • High landing page traffic, low conversions
- • Interest from friends and family only
- • People say they'd use it but don't engage with prototypes
When to Pivot vs Persist
Validation isn't binary. You might discover your core idea is sound but your approach needs adjustment, or that you're solving a real problem for the wrong audience.
Common Pivot Scenarios
- • Right problem, wrong solution approach
- • Right solution, wrong target market
- • Solving a "nice to have" instead of "must have" problem
- • Solution works but business model doesn't
- • Market timing is off (too early or too late)
Validation on a Budget
Free and Low-Cost Tools
Landing Pages
User Research
AI-Assisted Validation
AI tools can help you move faster through validation cycles:
Useful AI Applications
- • Generate interview questions and follow-ups
- • Analyze interview transcripts for patterns
- • Create landing page copy variations for testing
- • Draft survey questions that avoid bias
- • Generate user persona hypotheses to test
Common Validation Mistakes
Confirmation Bias
Looking for evidence that supports your idea while ignoring contradictory signals. Combat this by actively seeking ways your idea could be wrong.
Vanity Metrics
Focusing on metrics that feel good but don't predict success (like website visits instead of conversion rates or retention).
Analysis Paralysis
Endless validation without making decisions. Set specific criteria for what constitutes "enough" evidence to move forward.
Echo Chamber Testing
Only talking to people who think like you or come from similar backgrounds. Actively seek diverse perspectives.
Building Validation into Your Workflow
Weekly Validation Habits
- • Monday: Review previous week's user feedback
- • Tuesday-Thursday: Conduct 2-3 user interviews
- • Friday: Analyze patterns and plan next week's tests
- • Ongoing: Monitor landing page metrics and user behavior
Documentation That Matters
Keep simple records of what you learn:
- • Key quotes from user interviews
- • Conversion rates from different landing page variations
- • Common objections and concerns
- • Assumptions proven right or wrong
- • Patterns across multiple validation methods
From Validation to Building
Once you have strong evidence that people want what you're building, you can start development with much more confidence. But validation doesn't stop when coding begins.
Continuing Validation During Development
- • Release features incrementally and gather feedback
- • Maintain regular contact with early users
- • Test assumptions about user behavior with actual usage data
- • Stay open to pivoting based on real user behavior
The Validation Mindset
Validation isn't a phase you complete - it's a mindset you maintain. The most successful founders I know are constantly testing assumptions, talking to users, and staying humble about what they think they know.
Yes, validation can feel like it slows you down initially. But it's much faster to discover you're building the wrong thing after a week of validation than after six months of development.
🎯 Remember
The goal isn't to prove your idea is perfect - it's to learn what people actually need and build that instead of what you assume they need.
Every 'no' during validation saves you months of building something that won't work. Embrace the 'no' and use it to find the 'yes' that actually matters.
Struggling to validate your startup idea or not sure where to start? Let's talk about practical ways to test your assumptions quickly and cheaply. I love helping founders avoid the expensive mistakes I've made myself.
Chris Page
Fractional CTO and Software Engineer with 25+ years of experience. I help startups scale from 0 to 7 figures using AI-assisted development and proven frameworks.
