7.5 startup mistakes. Mistake number 4: The problem for which my solution is intended exists because I myself am experiencing it.

We continue the series of publications 7.5 startup mistakes about ambitious expectations and great disappointment of entrepreneurs. Today, Daniel Kozlov, director of business development for GVA LaunchGurus, talks about the fourth mistake of startups.

Daniel Kozlov:
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One of the most frequent misconceptions of entrepreneurs, which I encounter: the problem exists, since I myself encounter it.

Whether by virtue of a natural desire to challenge the “status quo”, or as a result of sincere love for his decision / invention / product, an entrepreneur very often believes that the problem he solves is acute and obvious to everyone around him.

If an entrepreneur hasn’t done enough at events, incubators and accelerators, then the question of how many people or companies were actually asked to understand whether there is a problem in principle, usually there are two possible answers:
a) I have been working in this industry for N years and have experienced this problem myself, so I know exactly what it is,
b) I spoke with my closest friends and colleagues and everyone said that they needed it.

The counter question “how many potential customers have already bought or are ready to make a cash deposit” usually causes despondency and “escape” in the description of the remarkable characteristics of the product or service.

If the entrepreneur is completely dense, you can hear, “Is it not obvious !? Of course they will buy. ”After this, a long“ excursion ”again follows on the remarkable characteristics of the product or service.

On the one hand, there have been many people on the market for several years, including us (GVA LaunchGurus), actively advocating such concepts as customer development, lean startup, battle testing, detailed work with customers in the process of formulating a product and service concept, and this, fortunately , already gives considerable fruit. On the other hand, the regularity with which “wooden” entrepreneurs meet is still alarming.

After all, the correct understanding and verification of the existence of a problem is the result not so much of the presence or lack of knowledge, but the psychological readiness to make mistakes, reconsider their business or admit that it is not viable. And any entrepreneur should be ready for this, although this is probably the most difficult. It is difficult to refuse or revise the concept, idea, product. But it is necessary to do this, and every month, not only while you are searching for the target audience or make the first sales.

In one of my businesses, the product changed 3 times, until we reached a working business model. This happened in 2 years and during this time we went through about 8 types of solutions. In another, the first product after working for a year “died”, as the market changed. I had to urgently look for new products for sale, in parallel changing the old one to the form that could be sold. In this case, we sifted through 5 different service formats during the year and absolutely not upset us buried 3 of them. So, through constant search and verification of problems for the solution of which people are willing to pay, both in that and in the other case, working businesses turned out.

In fact, an experimental approach, a scientific approach and an approach to understanding problems and solutions in entrepreneurship are very similar. In science there is a hypothesis, it must be checked, after testing, the hypothesis is edited, checked again, and so sometimes hundreds of times. Exactly the same can be recommended for beginner entrepreneurs. What scientist, without confirming his guesses by experiment, will argue that he is 100% aware of the solution (we are talking here about the fields of science in which testing hypotheses by experiment is possible, and for the entrepreneur it is almost always possible).

It is important to recognize that your knowledge is limited, to show a little modesty. Be prepared to question even the strongest beliefs.

And even when you are preparing to launch your new business, get ready for the fact that you will become an experimenter for 1-2 years. It means that:
a) a business may require dozens of improvements;
b) it will be necessary to do a series of iterations in working with end customers,
c) your "experiment" can explode in your face,
d) You followed a false hypothesis and created a false product that you urgently need to kill before it kills you and all of the company's employees (the real situation is when a business burns its last money in the wrong direction).

If you like this job, wear safety glasses and a white coat, be patient and dare.