The most expensive mistake in bootstrapping is building something nobody wants. Validation is just reducing that risk cheaply. You don't need a product to validate — you need conversations and a signal that someone will pay.
1. Talk to people the right way
Read The Mom Test. The core idea: ask about their past behaviour and real problems, never about your idea. People lie to be nice when you pitch; they tell the truth when you ask about their life.
- Good: "Walk me through the last time you dealt with X."
- Good: "What have you already tried? What did it cost you?"
- Bad: "Would you use a tool that does Y?" (worthless — everyone says yes)
2. Look for signals of real pain
You're hunting for problems people already spend time or money trying to solve. Hacky spreadsheets, manual workarounds, an existing tool they hate — these are gold. "That would be nice" is not.
3. Get a commitment, not a compliment
Compliments are noise. Real validation is when someone gives up something scarce: money (a pre-order, a deposit), reputation (an intro to their boss), or time (a recurring call). A landing page with a "buy / join the waitlist" button measures intent far better than a survey.
4. Build the smallest possible test
A one-page Carrd site, a Stripe payment link, a concierge service you run manually behind the scenes. Charge real money as early as you can — paid pilots beat free trials for learning.
Rule of thumb: if you can't get 5 people to say "tell me the moment it's ready" and mean it, you don't have validation yet — you have an idea you like.