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15 Comments

I know it's a pain. But what is the biggest obstacle to validating your ideas?

Validation is important. This is a crucial process for companies at all stages.

Whether you're launching a new idea, new feature, or a new product. You want to know if you're heading in the right direction.

So, what's the biggest obstacle?

  1. 6

    Finding an audience to validate the idea.

    If you don't have an audience, it's hard to expose your project to the targets.
    And you can't prove that you have traction.

    1. 1

      Definitely! What's your tips in terms of building/ identifying audience around your product?

      1. 1

        Good question!

        Facebook audience insights + Google Trends + Keyword surfer to identify the audience.

        Communities + Facebook ads or Google Ads to test it within 10 days...

        Do you have other tools or tips?

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          Very similar to what I do. On top of that, I'd recommend SimilarWeb and Exploding Topics for research ;)

          1. 1

            Ahah, same tools :) (+AnswerThePublic)

  2. 2

    Beyond reaching out to the right people (or community), not asking the right questions that'll help you understand the jobs to be done is the biggest obstacle.

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      I feel the same, totally!!!! How would you ensure yourself asking the right question? @Prao24

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        Asking users what led them to encounter a problem would be a good starting point.

        This is a great video around user testing. Might be helpful: Eric Migicovsky - How to Talk to Users

        1. 2

          Thanks for sharing this. Always enjoy YC content ;)

  3. 2

    Asking the right people. If you ask the wrong people you will feel that your idea has no value. Asking the right people will not only allow you to understand the market but also give you insights into the mind of your potential customers.

    1. 1

      Absolutely!!! Do you have any idea to avoid asking the wrong people? Any characteristics we should consider? @hvardhan878

  4. 1

    Two things stand out for me - too much choice, and fear of the first steps.

    By too much choice, I mean that there are so many ways to validate (build an MVP, landing page, write a blog post etc) that it can be overwhelming, and it can be even harder to pick an audience (or a location of audience) to go with (do I spend time on IH, reddit, chat to people at my local club, etc).

    And that leads in part to the fear of starting, which is really a fear of rejection. Your product idea is likely to get shot down in flames, and that hurts, or even worse it will be totally ignored. It's a good thing - that's exactly what you're trying to find out (does anyone actually want this), and if you can find those sparks of validation it makes them even more important. But still, it's mentally challenging to go through that process.

  5. 0

    Yeah validation is absolutely a frustrating phase, but nonetheless necessary as to not waste time building something nobody wants. I've just finished building an MVP for a product that can help you optimize this process and waste the least amount of time possible, check it out: LandingPing

  6. 1

    This comment was deleted 3 years ago.

    1. 2

      It's just relentless process I think. I face the same problems you are facing but it's better to keep going. I am an optimist :)

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