The Mom Test
by Rob Fitzpatrick · read the original
How to talk to customers and learn if your business is a good idea when everyone is lying to you. Fitzpatrick's rules for getting real data out of conversations instead of polite encouragement.
- 1
The Three Rules
Good customer conversations are about their life and their past, not your idea and their predictions. If they can't tell what you're building, they can't lie to please you.
- 2
Why Even Your Mom Lies to You
People lie to be nice, and mentioning your idea tells them which lie you want to hear. Ask about facts, not opinions, so honesty is the only option.
- 3
Compliments, Fluff, and Ideas Are Deflections
Compliments are worthless, generics are aspirational fiction, and feature requests are clues to dig into rather than orders to obey. Deflect all three back to specifics.
- 4
The Three Types of Bad Data
A meeting that produced only compliments and hypothetical enthusiasm was a failed meeting, no matter how good it felt.
- 5
Anchor to Commitment: Time, Reputation, Money
Enthusiasm without a sacrifice of time, reputation, or money is a polite no. Always push toward a concrete next step that costs them something.
- 6
Meetings Succeed or Fail
A meeting succeeded only if it ended in a concrete commitment or advancement. Vague positivity is failure, so force the moment of truth before you leave.
- 7
Keep It Casual
Early learning doesn't need scheduled interviews. Casual five-minute conversations get truer answers faster, because nobody is in meeting mode.
- 8
Who to Talk To
Slice your segment until you know exactly where those people gather and what they'd say. If everyone is a customer, no one is, and your data will be mush.