February 2020
Would you marry someone you never met or dated? No? Then why would you start a business without knowing who your customers are and what they really want? No entrepreneur wants to waste time and money on a nonviable company. If you are thinking about starting a business, the most important question is whether you should start a business. Bill Petrovic ( workshop chair and mentor, SCORE Indianapolis ; past vice president and treasurer, Roche Diagnostics) recommends using the lean startup method to answer that question. It is an efficient method of approximation for developing a successful business model. Make your best guess of what a successful business looks like. Ask people whom you think are your potential customers what they think about your guess. Adapt your guess to the feedback you get from those people. Then ask again. Repeat. If you should start a business, this process will likely converge on ...