The Mom Test: How to talk to customers & learn if your business is a good idea when everyone is lying to you

by Rob Fitzpatrick

Hey Scott, I run a startup trying to make advertising more playful and ultimately effective (vision). We're having a load of trouble figuring out how all the pieces of the industry fit together and where we can best fit into it (weakness). You know more about this industry than anyone and could really save us from a ton of mistakes (pedestal). We’re funded and have a couple products out already, but this is in no way a sales meeting -- we’re just moving into a new area and could really use some of your expertise (framing). Can you spare a bit of time in the next week to help point us in the right direction over a coffee? (ask) People like to help entrepreneurs. But they also hate wasting their time. An opening like this tells them that you know what you need and that they’ll be able to make a real difference.