pivoting to find product / market fit - frank v. taylor, lean startup circle dc
DESCRIPTION
In this presentation Frank shares: 1) How Restin went from operating pay-per-use robotic massage chairs on college campuses to helping PricewaterhouseCoopers engage attendees at SXSW. 2) How the lean startup method helped decrease time between pivots and the cost of acquiring validated learning. 3) What metrics are most important when deciding to pivot or persevere.TRANSCRIPT
Pivot to Find Product / Market FitFrank V. Taylor
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Ideation
Iteration - I
Problem: Need cheap / safe / legal stress relief
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Customer: Students with $ on campus ID card
Solution: Pay-per-use massage chairs with ID card reader payment system
MVP - I
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Validated Learning 1
Assumption Tested: Students will use massage chairs to relieve stress.
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Experiment: 1 chair in library for 9 days (free)
Result: 550 uses. Assumption Validated
Validated Learning 2
Assumption: Students will pay for the service.
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Experiment: Surveyed 170 users.
Result: 50% reported willingness to pay. Assumption Validated (but suspect)
Important!
“People are terrible predictors of their own
future behavior.”
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Working* Product
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Iteration - II.a
Problem: Stressed out students & negative perception on campus
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Customer: Student Assembly w/ big slush fund
Solution: Sponsor free massages in the library during final exam week
Validated Learning 1
Assumption: Student Assembly will pay to help students relax & improve image on campus.
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Experiment: Pitched sponsorship.
Result: Paid $8K. Assumption Validated
Iteration - II.b
Problem: Money to spend?
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Customer: Student Center facility managers
Solution: Provide free massages in the student center all year
Validated Learning 2
Assumption: This is a repeatable business model.
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Experiment: Pitched to 50 other schools.
Result: 0/50 buy. Assumption Invalidated
Important!
“Test assumptions about customer behaviors that
drive growth.”
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Iteration - II.a
Problem: Stressed out students & negative perception on campus
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Customer: Student Assembly w/ big slush fund
Solution: Sponsor free massages in the library during final exam week
Iteration - III
Problem: Need to attract a captive audience
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Customer: Trade show exhibitors
Solution: Provide free massages in trade show exhibit space
Validated Learning 1
Assumption: Event marketers will rent our massage chairs.
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Experiment: Pitched at industry event.
Result: Restin unit too heavy. Invalidated.
Golden Nugget of Info
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Do you rent regular massage chairs...like the
ones at Brookstone?
Validated Learning 2
Assumption: Event marketers will rent regular massage chairs.
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Experiment: Pitched via website & SEO.
Result: Paying customers in 3 months. 6-figure revenue in 12 months. Assumption Validated.
Success!
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