I have been reading “Lean Startup ” by Eric Ries, and it has been an insightful read. I will highlight some of his points in the later part of this article.

Most entrepreneurs have this dream of building the next big thing –there is nothing wrong with that – that will change the whole world in the way things are done. They want to create an immediate disruption out of the blue. Taking this stand is important in the long run but certain things have to be considered before venturing into such.
Technology has made it possible that everything can be built. Under water Tennis Court, Driverless Cars, Fighter Drones, Artificial Intelligence and so on. Once anything is conceived, it can be built- except in rare cases. So with this in mind, an entrepreneur who has an idea makes the mistake of moving straight into development and making some forecast based on facts and not real life experiences.
Before you jump into your idea, take a cue from this quote:

“The first step in understanding a new product or service is to figure out if its fundamentally value-creating or value-destroying” Eric Ries

If you have done your research by asking real time customers and not vague hypothesis, then you can move to next step which is quality. Quality means different things to different people. A feature in a product or service might be relevant in Nigeria but not in Ghana. Customers determine the quality or feature of a product. After all, if they can’t use or enjoy it, it is of no use.

“If we do not know who the customer is, we do not know what quality is” Eric Ries

Finally, build what people want. Sometimes, customers don’t know what the want. You have to create a prototype and see if they will really need it. It is surprising to note that what you thought they might not need is what they really want.

“Remember, if we’re building something that nobody wants, it doesn’t matter if we’re doing it on time and budget” Eric Ries

Many businesses have shut down because they thought the customers needed what they were building. This is due to poor research from the owners.

I recommend the book “Lean Startup” by Eric Ries.

Let me know your thoughts. .