The Recipe to Faster Find Product-Market-Fit aka “The Mom-Test”.
I wanted to share a simple, yet powerful insight from one of our current NEXUS workshops. Kudos to Otto Söderlund (2x exit founder) who shared his no BS learnings.
It’s so simple - it will surprise you. Unless you’re already a pro, the ROI on this article should be 100x; if not, send me an upset email.
If you are a founder or product manager pre-product market fit this is for you!
Finding product market fit means going from an idea and product thesis to building a proto-type to selling it to one customer. Then to ten. Then to a thousand. The difficult thing is that we humans sometimes think we’d like a product but in the end we don’t buy it. Or we buy it and stop using it. So simply asking somebody whether they’d like your product has so many flaws. How exactly does the product work? Do I like the UI/UX? How much does it cost? Will I get used to using it or forget about it? Will it actually achieve its promises?
Therefore finding product market fit is an iterative journey. The faster you can gain new insights the faster you can reach product market fit. Thus speed is of course a factor. The second one is insights; more specifically the quality of your insights. This article shares a few insights on how to ask questions to gain better insights, and hence build the right product to reach your market and scale (faster).
The wrong way - how not to interact with potential customers and why.
You’ve identified a problem and are building a solution for it.
Now you’ve managed to get in touch with a few potential customers.
You describe your solution and ask them if they would find it useful.
The conversation goes something like this:
Interviewer: "We've developed this amazing new fitness app that tracks your workouts and diet. It's got all these cool features like AI-driven workout plans and a social media platform for sharing progress. Don't you think it's awesome?"
Customer: "Oh, it sounds great, really interesting!"
Interviewer: "Would you buy this app if it were available? I'm sure you would love to have it for your fitness journey, right?"
Customer: "Yes, I might buy it. It sounds like something I would use."
Interviewer: "What features do you think we should add to make it even more amazing?
Customer: "Well, I'm not sure. Maybe more social media functions?"Interviewer: "Great idea! Everyone loves social media. So you'll definitely start using our app as soon as it's out, right?"
Customer: "Sure, I'll give it a try."
The customer never actually tries your app.
You gained no new insight into what would have made them use and buy.
So, what went wrong?
People are actually nice. Most will give you a friendly “yes I like it” answer if asked the wrong way. Which is where the term “the Mom-Test” comes from - ask your mom about your new business idea, chances are she’ll like it. Supporting as she is she wouldn’t say otherwise - would she now
More specifically, in the above dialogue the interviewer
is leading the customer with suggestive and flattering questions
the questions are not open-ended and don't encourage honest or detailed feedback
the customer's responses are likely influenced by the desire to please the interviewer rather than provide authentic and useful insights.
Hence, this approach fails to gather concrete evidence or actionable feedback that would be beneficial in product development or market understanding.
No insight
No sell
…
The right way - how to ask customer questions to gain valuable insights and find product-market fit.
Instead, as early as possible you interview the customers relevant to your idea and solution hypothesis. The conversation goes something like this:
Interviewer: "Can you tell me about your current routine for tracking your fitness and diet?"
Customer: "I usually use a basic app for logging workouts and a separate one for diet. It's a bit tedious to switch between them."
Interviewer: "Interesting. What challenges do you face with your current method?"
Customer: "It's time-consuming, and sometimes I forget to log my meals or workouts. I wish it was all in one place."
Interviewer: "How often do you find yourself forgetting to log this information?"
Customer: "Maybe a couple of times a week. Especially when I'm busy."
Interviewer: "Have you tried looking for solutions to this problem? What would your ideal solution look like?"
Customer: "I've looked but haven't found anything that combines both well. Ideally, it would be a single app that's easy to use and keeps everything organized."
Interviewer: "Thank you for sharing that. How important is a social sharing feature for you in such an app?"
Customer: "Not very important to me. I prefer focusing on my progress rather than sharing it."
…
In this dialogue the interviewer
asks open-ended questions about the customer's current behaviors and problems,
avoids leading the conversation towards their own assumptions,
gathers specific, actionable insights that could guide the development of the product to better meet the customer's needs
gains actionable product insight
might not immediately sell, but can follow up
So to conclude: Don’t do the Mom-Test. Learn from your customers first, sell second.
For more reading, the concept has been well illustrated in the book The Mom-Test by Rob Fitzpatrick, a short 2-3 hours read potentially worth acquiring.
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Want another, B2B example?
Bad Customer Insight Interview
Interviewer: "We're developing this revolutionary cloud-based project management tool that's going to change the way SMEs handle their projects. It's faster, more efficient, and more user-friendly than anything else on the market. You're going to love it, right?"
Business Owner: "Oh, it sounds impressive."
Interviewer: "Would you switch to our tool immediately once it's launched? It has all the latest features and is very affordable."
Business Owner: "Yes, I might consider it. It does sound like something we could use."
Interviewer: "What features should we add to make you switch right away?"
Business Owner: "Maybe integration with some of the software we already use?"
Interviewer: "Of course, we plan to have numerous integrations. So, you're going to be one of our first customers, right?"
Business Owner: "Sure, I’ll look into it when it's out."
This dialogue is problematic because the interviewer makes assumptions and leads the business owner with suggestive and flattering remarks. The questions are biased towards positive responses and do not encourage candid or detailed feedback.
…
Good Customer Insight Interview
Interviewer: "Could you describe how your team currently manages projects and the tools you use?"
Business Owner: "We use a mix of email, spreadsheets, and a basic project management tool. It's a bit fragmented."
Interviewer: "What challenges does your team face with this approach?"
Business Owner: "It's hard to keep track of everything. We sometimes miss deadlines or overlook tasks."
Interviewer: "How do these challenges impact your business?"
Business Owner: "It leads to inefficiency and sometimes client dissatisfaction."
Interviewer: "Have you looked for alternatives? What specific features or improvements are you seeking?"
Business Owner: "We need something more integrated, with better task tracking and reporting features. But it needs to be simple enough for everyone to use."
Interviewer: "How important is software integration with your existing systems?"
Business Owner: "Very important. We can't afford to replace our current systems entirely."
This dialogue effectively follows "The Mom Test" principles. The interviewer asks open-ended, non-leading questions focused on understanding the business owner's current practices, challenges, and needs. There's no presumption about the product's value, and the conversation aims to gather actionable insights.