So, you have a business idea youβre excited about. Congratulations! Before you put your savings into stock or a logo, you need some evidence that people actually want it. That process is called validation.
Validation wonβt guarantee success, but it shows you early whether to keep going, change direction or drop the idea while thatβs still cheap. The infographic below sums up the seven steps, and the sections after it go through each one.
At every step, look for the fastest and cheapest test. A few weeks of validation can save months of building something nobody buys.
1. Do an online search
Even if your idea feels original, someone has probably tried something close to it. Search Google using the words a customer would type, not the name youβve given your idea. Then check marketplaces, social media and Google Trends to see whether interest is growing or fading.
List five to ten competitors with their prices, what they promise and what their reviews complain about.
Example: you want to sell refillable cleaning products. Three brands already sell them in your country, and their reviews keep mentioning slow delivery and bulky packaging. Thatβs a gap you could fill.
Common mistake: reading βno competitorsβ as good news. It often means thereβs no demand. Competitors prove people already pay for this kind of product.
2. Seek feedback
Friends and family want to be kind, so aim for 10 to 15 short conversations with people who match your target customer.
Ask what they do today rather than whether they like your idea. βHow do you buy this now?β gets a more useful answer than βWould you buy this?β. If youβre worried about being copied, share the problem and the general concept, and keep recipes, suppliers or code to yourself.
Example: instead of βWould you buy refillable cleaning products?β, ask βWhen did you last buy cleaning products, where, and how much did you spend?β
Common mistake: counting compliments as validation. βSounds greatβ costs nothing. An email sign-up or a pre-order tells you much more.
3. Build an MVP
A minimum viable product (MVP) is the smallest version of your idea that lets someone experience its core value. For an online business, that might be a few products, a landing page that takes pre-orders or a small sample batch.
If you need funding, a crowdfunding campaign doubles as a test: if nobody backs it, you have your answer.
Example: rather than manufacturing 1,000 units in five scents, order 50 units of one scent and sell them through a simple online store.
Common mistake: spending months perfecting design and packaging before anyone has paid. The first version only needs to be good enough to sell.
4. Test, test and test again
Put your MVP in front of real buyers and measure what happens. Before you start, decide what counts as success, such as a set number of sales in a month from a small ad budget.
Change one thing at a time (price, offer or message) so you know what made the difference. Include sceptical people: those least likely to buy will show you the objections you need to answer. Our guide on how to test a product before launch covers more methods.
Example: create two versions of your product page, one focused on saving money and one on reducing plastic. Split a small ad budget between them and compare add-to-cart rates.
Common mistake: moving the goalposts once results come in. If you missed your target, adjust the product or offer instead of redefining success.
Does your idea hold up? Good. Time for the next steps.
5. Build your brand
Now give the business a clear identity: a name, a short mission statement, a visual style and a consistent tone. Without one, you can look like a copy of a competitor even when your idea came first.
Check that the name is easy to spell and say, and that the domain and social media handles are free. Our article on branding and positioning explains how to stand apart.
Example: a name built around refills tells customers what makes you different; a generic βcleanβ name blends in.
Common mistake: choosing a name so narrow it wonβt fit when you add new product lines.
6. Protect your product
A brand only builds a reputation if people can find it. Register your domain and social media handles early and put up a simple landing page, ideally with a waiting-list form. It stakes your claim online and starts building search visibility.
On the legal side, check whether your business name is already a registered trademark, and consider registering your own with your countryβs intellectual property office.
Common mistake: assuming that owning a domain gives you the rights to a name. A domain and a trademark are separate things.
7. Acquire customers
Ask yourself: βHow will I get my first customer?β Look at where your testers and pre-orders came from and start there.
Map out your sales funnel: how people discover you, visit your store, buy and come back. Track what each new customer costs you and compare it with your margin per order.
Example: if most pre-orders came from Instagram, put your early time and budget there before testing a second channel.
Common mistake: trying every channel at once. On a small budget, you do each one badly and learn little.
Next steps
Validation is a loop, not a checklist. If a test in step 4 fails, go back to your feedback or your MVP, change something and test again.
Once you have real evidence, put it into a business plan. When youβre ready to sell, you can open a store on a free trial and see how customers respond before committing further.
