TEST 01
Is the problem painful enough?
Look for a defined buyer group with a recurring, consequential problem, not just encouraging comments about the idea.
Early-Stage Founders
Would ten more customers make your business stronger, or just busier?
If the next ten customers needed the same personal attention, custom development and discounts as your first three, would you still have a viable business? You need enough evidence to know what is worth growing.
Download the free playbook →Five tests
Prove the market. Then make growth repeatable.
A good demonstration, early sales and positive feedback are encouraging. They do not prove that similar customers will buy, receive value and be served at a sustainable cost.
TEST 02
Will someone actually pay?
Test a clear offer and a real price with someone able to make or progress a purchasing decision.
TEST 03
Does the product deliver the result?
Agree the outcome with the customer and establish whether the product genuinely delivers it.
TEST 04
Can you do it again without heroics?
Test whether similar customers can buy, adopt and benefit without excessive custom work, discounts or founder effort.
TEST 05
Can you win and serve customers economically?
Check whether the price can sustain the time and cost of winning, setting up and supporting customers.
What comes next?
The right answer isn't always to grow.
The playbook helps you decide whether to continue testing the market, work on repeatability or cautiously test growth. Its practical exercises include customer conversations, evidence reviews and a 90-day plan.
It then introduces the Growth Loop to help identify which part of finding, winning and retaining customers needs attention next.
Any self-assessment in the playbook is a starting hypothesis, not an objective verdict about your business.
Why it's free
Practical guidance before you commit more money.
The playbook draws on my experience in enterprise technology, sales leadership and coaching. It is designed to help founders ask more useful questions and test their assumptions without needing to hire an adviser.
Already have evidence of demand and looking to build a repeatable commercial operation? Explore Growth & GTM →
Working together
A guide can raise the questions.
A conversation helps you work through them.
If you would value an independent perspective, I can help you examine the assumptions behind your plan, interpret customer feedback and decide what to test next.
We work with the evidence you have, including what it does not yet tell us, while keeping your judgement and expertise at the centre.
Discuss your business →