Lean Iterative Product Development

Build What People Actually Want (Or Die Trying)

Let's cut the corporate bullshit: 90% of startups fail because they build garbage nobody wants. I've watched teams at Samsung burn $500K on a "button" feature users ignored, and startups hemorrhage cash building apps that died on launch day.

This isn't theory – it's autopsy reports from the startup graveyard.

Here's how not to join them.

The Only Metric That Matters:

Are People Pulling Out Their Credit Cards?

The Lean Startup method isn't a TED Talk fantasy. It's survival tactics for founders allergic to wasting time and money.

• Test before you burn cash (your investors will thank you)
• Get raw data, not investor PowerPoint fantasies
• Pivot or die when the numbers scream "this sucks"

I've seen startups raise $2M, build for 18 months, then crash because they confused "cool features" with "what customers actually need." Don't be them.

Build-Measure-Learn:

The Feedback Loop That Doesn't Sugarcoat

1. Build: Your MVP Should Make You Cringe

Dropbox's MVP was a fucking video demo. No code. No product. Just validation. They went from that to a $10B valuation.

Your Reality Check:

• That "essential feature list"? Cut it in half. Then cut it again.
• If you're not embarrassed to show your MVP to competitors, you've failed.

Pro Tip: Use no code tools to hack together a prototype in 48 hours. No engineers needed.

2. Measure: Your Gut is a Liar

Vanity metrics are startup heroin. Founders OD on "total users" while their business flatlines. Track these instead:

• Retention: Are users crawling back? (If not, you're building a ghost town)
• Revenue: Are they paying? (No "free users" count as customers)
• Engagement: Are they using the core feature or just window-shopping?

Case Study: A SaaS startup I advised tracked "sign-ups" for months. Then we checked retention: 83% churn in Week 1. They pivoted, killed half their features, and hit 40% Month 3 retention.

3. Learn: Murder Your Darlings or Get Murdered

Instagram started as Burbn – a clunky check-in app nobody wanted. They saw users only cared about photos, torched their original idea, and became a $100B company.

Hard Truth: Your first idea is probably trash. The data will tell you. Listen or die.

Why This Works When You're Broke, Desperate, and Out of Time

• Saves Cash: Test cheap, fail cheap. Each iteration costs less than a funeral for your startup.
  • Example: A founder built a $0 MVP using Google Forms and Calendly. Landed 12 paying customers before writing code.
• Saves Time: Launch in weeks, not years. Your "perfect product" is rotting in development hell.
  • Reality: Users don't care about your tech stack. They care if you solve their problem.
• Forces Reality Checks: Your vision is irrelevant. Solve their pain or GTFO.

How to Actually Do This (Without the Corporate Fluff)

1. Start with Pain, Not Your Genius

Don't pitch me your blockchain-AI-metaverse app. Tell me what hurts so bad people will Venmo you $50 to fix it today.

Tactic:

• Go to Reddit/Quora. Search "[your industry] + sucks".
• Build whatever those angry rants are about.

2. Build the Bare Minimum (Then Cut It Again)

Use no-code tools. Hack together spreadsheets. Fuck "scalability" – prove value first.

Tools I Use:

• Landing pages: Carrd ($19/month)
• Prototyping: Figma (free)
• Payments: Stripe (integrates with everything)

3. Get Ugly Feedback (From Strangers Who Hate You)

Not from your mom. Not from your co-founder. From strangers who'll tell you your baby's ugly.

Pro Move: Offer $20 gift cards for brutal honesty. It's cheaper than building the wrong product.

4. Fail Fast, Learn Faster

Every crashed test is ammo. Collect it. Use it.

Example: A food delivery app tested 3 pricing models. All failed. But the data revealed users wanted group orders, not solo meals. Pivot → 300% revenue jump.

Where Founders Screw Up (And How to Avoid It)

• Feature Creep: "Just one more feature..." No. Ship now.
• Ignoring Silent Failures: If users aren't complaining, they don't care enough to bother.
• Chasing Perfection: Your MVP isn't a masterpiece. It's a test.

Proof This Shit Works

• Dropbox: Video MVP → $10B valuation
• Airbnb: Air mattresses in a crackhouse apartment → $100B empire
• Zappos: Photos of shoes from mall stores → $1.2B exit

The Cold Hard Truth

Building products isn't about your genius idea. It's about adapting faster than your competitors can copy you.

Most founders fuck this up. They build in silence, launch big, and crash harder.

You're smarter. Build small. Test ruthlessly. Let data – not ego – drive you.

Ready to stop building garbage? Let's talk. I help founders cut the bullshit and make products people actually pay for.

P.S. Your "perfect product" is probably wrong. Build the right one instead.