This is what I've seen happen with the "lean startup," a philosophy of viewing your startup as a scientific experiment in search of a business model. This concept began as a new idea and then became so popular people now consider it common sense. As the partner at VC firm ff Venture Capital, I am one of those people who regularly advises our portfolio companies to think creatively about how to test their operating assumptions.

But the challenge is: What experiments can you run to test your hypotheses? Below are 10. To structure your experiments, I suggest using the Javelin Experiment Board.

Related: How to Grow Your Company Lean

Step I: Explore the problem and the market
1. Blog publicly about what you're doing. This helps you to get qualitative, personal feedback, which you need to inform quantitative feedback (i.e measurable outcomes and metrics) you gather later. Also, you should include face-to-face interviews with customers (read these quick tips for effective customer interviews).

2. Ask open questions on Quora and other online discussion tools. Listen to what people have to say. Many consumers want to provide feedback, but they just need to be asked. Jump on a Q&A site like Quora or forums like Reddit or one specific to your industry and start asking questions. You can begin with a broad inquiry like, "How do people solve this problem…." For example, "What CRM tools are used by venture capital and private equity funds?" This will surface both competitors and customers.

3. Create surveys and experiment with monetary and non-monetary incentives. Sending a questionnaire to your customer base is a great way to elicit feedback and discover needs.

For instance, try evaluating response an incentive like: "$100 off our product when it first hits the market." If people are eager to apply that discount to a product that doesn't even exist yet, it's further validation of customer demand.

4. Collect pre-orders. Crowdfunding platforms like Indiegogo and Kickstarter have made it much easier to measure market demand for a product or service. By describing the product's features and offering it to the masses, entrepreneurs can get an idea of how the market outside of the crowdfunding platform would respond. Also, the instantaneous feedback and questions can help startups uncover potential issues and allow them to correct them before scaling.

5. Run test ads. Utilize Google AdWords, Yahoo!, Bing and other platforms by creating ads that take viewers to a page soliciting email signups and possibly pre-orders. Test which ads are most effective. (For instance, Tim Ferriss titled his book based on Adwords conversion rates.).

And don't just collect emails. Try to also collect data in the form of a mini survey. I suggest checking out QuickMVP, an all-in-one tool for building launch pages, driving traffic through Google AdWords and analyzing customer demand.

Related: Prove Your Business Idea Will Succeed

Step II: Explore the solution
6. Test multiple iterations of your site. Design and user experience definitely play a role in how the consumer views your startup and its offerings. So experiment with it. Launchrock is a great site for building launch pages and analyzing user data. Or try experimenting with different A/B testing campaigns using Optimizely. Here are examples of what makes a viral landing page.

7. Talk with real users of your beta product. Beta testers can potentially be your lifeline when launching a new product. To get people interested in testing out your startup, check out websites like Betali.st, Erli Bird and StartupLi.st, among others.

Step III: Market
8. Analyze site usage. Testing what words get the most hits can give you insight into the target market. Drill down in Google Analytics, taking advantage of goal tracking, demographic information, interest segmentation and cohort analytics.

9. Analyze which marketing campaigns get the most traction. Just as you need to understand your end users, it's also important to understand the behavior of the influencers who touch your end users. There are several social-media analysis tools out there that can help you with this, including Copromote and Bottlenose.

10. Test referral programs with monetary and non-monetary incentives. Referral programs can be a great way to acquire new customers, while keeping current customers happy.

A famous example of a successful referral program is Dropbox. The company was smart and used a two-sided incentive for sharing. The person who signs up for Dropbox through a referral link gets more space than through a normal sign up, and the referrer gets additional space as well.

Related: How to Know If You're Really Running Lean

Limited Time Offer

Get a FREE Strategy Session Grow Faster & Easier!
We can show you how. Get Started for Free Today »
VIEW COMMENTS (2)
Product Testing Starting A Business Lean Startups A/B Testing Experiments

Warren Buffett Tells You How to Turn $40 Into $10...

Is RadioShack Back? Nick Cannon Thinks So

Why Successful People Leave Their Loser Friends Behind

5 Tips for Making Your Office a Smart Office
LATEST

Success
10 Toxic Behaviors to Leave Behind in 2015
Stop and think about all the time and money you waste on stuff that does you absolutely no good whatsoever.
STEVE TOBAK 5 min read

Communication Strategies
3 Ways to Interact With Others That Will Make You More Charismatic
By harnessing and developing positive substitutes to these turn-off traits, anyone can add to their charm and interpersonal effectiveness.
HARRISON MONARTH 6 min read

Entrepreneur Mindset
6 Telltale Signs It's Time to Become Your Own Boss
Having trouble deciding whether to make the transition from employee to entrepreneur? Consider the following.
JIM JUDY 4 min read

Habits
3 Bad Habits That Keep Success Out of Reach
Success requires confidence to begin, discipline to persist and insight to recognize how to improve.
JACQUELINE WHITMORE 4 min read

Business Travel
5 Ways to Stretch Your Travel Budget With Freebies and Discounts
Business demands travel, regardless if you can barely afford it. Don't worry, there is always a deal to be had.
JOHN BOITNOTT 4 min read
FEATURED CONTRIBUTORS

The 10 Worst Entrepreneurs of 2015
STEVE TOBAK
Author and Managing Partner, Invisor Consulting

8 Web Design Trends That Are Bound to Be Huge in 2016 (Infographic)
GEOFF WEISS
Staff Writer. Frequently covers digital media.

7 Mental Shifts That Allowed Me to Become a Millionaire at 22
TUCKER HUGHES
Director, Hughes Marino's Orange County Office

How This Small Company Uses Big Data to Succeed
ENTREPRENEUR STAFF

How 10 CEOs Keep Company Culture Alive, Even as Their Startups Expand
TANYA BENEDICTO KLICH
Data & Featured Lists Editor

Tired of Useless Meetings? 9 Ways to Make Them More Effective. (Infographic)
KIM LACHANCE SHANDROW
Senior Writer. Frequently covers cryptocurrency, future tech, social media, star...

How to Make the Quantum Jump From Dreamer to Entrepreneurial Great in 2016
MARTY FUKUDA
Chief Operating Officer of N2 Publishing
Presented by You've Arrived

You've Arrived
No Shortcuts: How One Stylist Built His Beauty Powerhouse
This salon mogul says hard work, long hours and high standards are key.
TANYA BENEDICTO KLICH 3 min read
Dylan's Candy Bar Founder: To Stay Focused, Follow Your Gut
The Thinking Behind This Stylist's $1,000 Haircut
Dylan Lauren: How to Keep Your Brick and Mortar Relevant
How One High-End Stylist Keeps His Team Sharp
How to

Success Strategies
7 Mental Shifts That Allowed Me to Become a Millionaire at 22
The secret to success in the business world is a combination of grit and creative thinking.
TUCKER HUGHES

Productivity
Tired of Useless Meetings? 9 Ways to Make Them More Effective. (Infographic)
Agenda Item Number 1: Control your meetings so your meetings don't control you.
KIM LACHANCE SHANDROW

Wealth
7 Tips to Becoming a Millionaire
Money is the harvest of your production. Everything that you have is in direct proportion to your actions.
DANIEL ALLY

Starting a Business
Need a Business Idea? Here are 55
You can start any of these home based businesses for less than $5,000.
ENTREPRENEUR PRESS & CHERYL KIMBALL

Low-cost Business Ideas
Low Cost Business Ideas
Looking on how to start a small business but don't have much money? Our low cost startup ideas will help you plan a business to fit your budget.
Lists

Entrepreneurs
The 10 Worst Entrepreneurs of 2015
If you're looking for best practices to follow, take a pass on learning from these folks.
STEVE TOBAK

Entrepreneur360 Index
How This Small Company Uses Big Data to Succeed
Meet one of the companies on the Entrepreneur360 Index that fits in the 'data champions' category.
ENTREPRENEUR STAFF

Entrepreneur360 Index
How 10 CEOs Keep Company Culture Alive, Even as Their Startups Expand
Proactive measures are necessary -- especially when a company is growing faster than expected.
TANYA BENEDICTO KLICH

Entrepreneurial Mindset
10 Mindsets of a True Winner
Mindset only matters when it leads to action. Winning is an action, not a mindset.
STEVE TOBAK

Entrepreneur360 Index
How This Travel Company Scored Big by Playing It Safe
Meet one of the companies on the E360 index that fits in the 'controllers' category.
ENTREPRENEUR STAFF
COMPANY
Advertise
Brand Licensing
Contact Us
Staff
Contribute

UPCOMING EVENTS
Growthcon 2015
Entrepreneur 360™
Masters & Mentors Atlanta
PRODUCTS
Business Books
Reprints & Licensing
Classifieds
Entrepreneur Coaching
EDITIONS
United States
China
India
Mexico
Middle East
Philippines
South Africa
CONNECT
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Google+
Pinterest
Instagram
YouTube
Tumblr
RSS

Subscribe Now
Gift Subscriptions
Subscriber Services
DIGITAL EDITIONS
iOSAndroidKindle
Copyright © 2015 Entrepreneur Media, Inc. All rights reserved. Terms of Use Privacy Policy Site Map

Business and Community Partners

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

No comments:

Facebook Badge