3 Reasons Research Backed My Project—and the 1 Conversation That Broke It (part 2/3)

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The Wrong Questions That Led Me Astray and the Right One That Opened My Eyes

What makes data reliable?

When starting a new business idea, gathering data by pitching to friends and gauging their interests seems like it could be helpful. I've tried this approach, and here's what happened:

"Here's my idea."

"This is great. It solves a problem I've been having!"

"Thanks! I knew my idea was as great as I am…"

Despite the enthusiasm, my Stripe account didn't reflect it. This is a common problem and the following post explains everything about it.

To keep it short:

• Don't listen to compliments
• Don't listen to feature requests
• Don't listen to a hypothetical purchase

These don't tell you about the urgency of the problem your product aims to solve.

The reality is that people often don't realize the problems they will encounter in the future—they only focus on immediate needs. While you and your audience may see a solution, they might not perceive the problem as urgent enough to take immediate action.

This is similar to driving. If there's an obstacle in front of you, your focus is on avoiding it, not realizing if you're on the wrong route. Our audience is like they're always driving, trying to swerve around obstacles. If your product doesn't help them serve, they're unlikely to be interested.

How do you know if you're helping our audience swerve around obstacles? You ask better questions. Here's how:

Focus on asking questions about your audience's current activities.

• Are they investing money in any solutions?
• What issue is among their top three priorities?
• Are they actively seeking new remedies?

By serving these questions and getting back answers, you can gain valuable insights into your audience's true needs — not the just ones they're fibbing about.

Maybe they bought a new self-driving car that swerves around the obstacles for them. Maybe they like swerving around problems. Alternatively, maybe they really are getting bothered about getting somewhere late from all the obstacles. So let's ask about it!

You will never know if you don't ask. Ask about what they're already doing or what they've already done about the problem.

Pitching your solution preemptively would never reveal if this is a big enough problem. This is bad, so to avoid wasting time you should just ask!

Let's say you fix this. Your conversation might go something like this:

Hey, I noticed you drive a lot. Tell me a little about it.

The streets are full of debris, but I got this self-driving car that handles everything for me now. Can't complain

Now you know they aren't looking for the new route you're offering. Cool. This saved you time.

Or it can go like this:

Hey, I noticed you drive a lot. Tell me a little about it.

The streets are full of debris and I can't stand it. I've tried swerving around it, but am I really going to test my reaction time every day? I need something new.

Hey, they just opened a new road that's much cleaner. Have you tried it?

No. But now I know where I'm going next time. Thanks!

The difference here is that you reveal their experience first.

Pitching without knowing their situation is like shooting in the dark. Getting better answers is just turning on the light first.

After analyzing these interactions, you may notice patterns that prompt a decision: Should you educate them on why your offer is so valuable, or should you create something new all together?

In the next article, we will explore strategies for addressing both options and streamlining the process for optimal results.

Check out the next section part 3 of why my project for occult book summaries failed.