Before committing to a costly lease and build-out for a restaurant, the speaker tested the concept with a delivery-only model from a commissary kitchen. This pre-MVP approach, now known as a cloud kitchen, validated the idea with minimal capital and risk.
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Before quitting her job, Jessie Inchauspé committed to working on her Instagram account for one hour every day for six months. This low-risk approach allowed her to gather data and audience feedback, validating the concept's potential before going all-in.
Contrary to popular belief, successful entrepreneurs are not reckless risk-takers. They are experts at systematically eliminating risk. They validate demand before building, structure deals to minimize capital outlay (e.g., leasing planes), and enter markets with weak competition. Their goal is to win with the least possible exposure.
To test an idea like flavored creatine for women, use an AI image generator to create mockups. Post these images on Facebook Marketplace, a low-friction platform, to gauge interest via views, clicks, and messages before investing in product development. This provides quick, cheap data.
Instead of starting with a blank slate, Nike's team prototypes new ideas by physically cutting and modifying existing products. This "cobbling" method enables rapid, low-cost testing of core concepts before investing in new designs and expensive molds, allowing them to fail fast and forward.
In AI, low prototyping costs and customer uncertainty make the traditional research-first PM model obsolete. The new approach is to build a prototype quickly, show it to customers to discover possibilities, and then iterate based on their reactions, effectively building the solution before the problem is fully defined.
Don't just ask customers about their business—independently verify it. When launching Uber Eats, the team couldn't get clear answers on restaurant economics. So they ordered food, weighed the ingredients, and built their own model, giving them the "ground truth" needed to confidently propose their pricing structure.
To de-risk their unconventional idea, Liquid Death created a fake ad and a Facebook page to test market reception. They secured millions of views and 80,000 followers, proving demand and generating traction that was crucial for raising capital, turning a concept into an investable business.
When expanding his law firm, John Morgan uses a 'bullets before bombs' strategy. He first enters a new city with a small, low-cost team and ad budget (the 'bullets') to test viability. Only after seeing positive traction does he commit significant capital and resources (the 'bombs'), de-risking growth.
Crisp.ai's founder advocates for selling a product before it's built. His team secured over $100,000 from 30 customers using only a Figma sketch. This approach provides the strongest form of market validation, proving customer demand and significantly strengthening a startup's position when fundraising with VCs.
Seeing an existing successful business is validation, not a deterrent. By copying their current model, you start where they are today, bypassing their years of risky experimentation and learning. The market is large enough for multiple winners.