🚦 3-2-1 Traction — don’t disrupt what works

The opportunity in satisfaction; big markets aren’t enough; habits of successful cofounders; raising a seed round; all of entrepreneurship in 7 steps; and getting started.

Happy Halloween, friend 👋

It’s another week, so here are 3 big ideas from me, 2 ideas from others, and 1 question to help you focus in your journey to find traction.

Let’s go. 👇

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3 ideas from me

one

A common mistake in product design is disrupting what already works.

As I’ve said before, my favourite value prop tool is an experience map — a flowchart that documents your customer’s experience trying to meet their need without you (either because they don’t know about you, or you don’t exist yet). It’s a fantastic way to identify the pain points and opportunities that become central to your value proposition.

BUT… used properly, it should also show what already works. Your customer’s life isn’t all doom and gloom. In solving their problem, there are likely things they want to keep as they are.

To design a strong product, disrupt what doesn’t work — but preserve what does.

Want to dive much deeper? Join the The Startup Product Playbook webinar on Dec 6th.

two

The entire process of entrepreneurship, from idea to exit:

1. Find a growing group of customers

2. Who have a really big problem

3. That you can solve better

4. Get them to say yes

5. Make it repeatable

6. Scale it huge

7. Exit

Please resist the urge to overcomplicate it.

three

A “big market” doesn’t just mean there are a lot of people in it.

There also has to be desirability:

• Lots of potential customers; AND

• A big, unsolved (or poorly solved) problem; AND

• A scalable, lovable, truly differentiated product that solves it; AND

• An eagerness to pay for it.

When looking at your addressable market, don’t just consider the people and problem.

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2 ideas from others

Matt Welsh on raising a seed round in Silicon Valley:

At first I did not know how to respond to the many investors contacting me. My mental model was that entrepreneurs are the ones who approach VCs, hat and pitch deck in hand, begging for their patronage. Suddenly I found a bunch of VCs really interested in helping me in various ways — connecting me to other investors, taking time to brainstorm on ideas, helping to fine-tune my pitch deck. I didn’t understand what was happening until I realized that many investors do this in order to build a good relationship with founders — almost like a “free trial” in case you end up taking money from them. And VCs themselves have to hustle to find good deals, so they’re motivated to reach out to, and be helpful to, founders.

Worth a read. Just ignore the tech bro subtext. 😅

Advice from First Round on co-founder best practices:

1. Get explicit about who makes which decisions (and how)

2. Bring in a shared executive coach

3. Design an executive team with accountability in mind

4. Create a ritual of getting together

5. Have “spiritual alignment”, and reflect it in all decisions

You’re going through the ringer together. Be prepared.

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1 question for you

You know what you need to do to make progress, so:

1. How soon can you get started?

2. How soon can you learn from the failures?

That’s it for me. Have an amazing week, my friend!

—jdm

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PS… If you’re enjoying 3-2-1 Traction, will you take 6 seconds and forward this issue to a friend? It goes a long way in helping me grow the newsletter (and helping more founders find traction).