Step 5 of 6 · Launch & traction

How to build an MVP, launch and get first customers

Guides on launching a startup: building an MVP, getting your first 10 customers, where to launch, and signals of product-market fit.

  1. 1 Find ideas
  2. 2 Validate demand
  3. 3 Score & choose
  4. 4 Market & pricing
  5. 5 Launch & traction
  6. 6 Risks & red flags

4 launch & traction guides

  1. 1Beginner · 6 min readHow to build an MVP that tests the right thingAn MVP is the smallest thing you can put in front of real users that tests your riskiest assumption. It is an experiment, not a cut-down product.
  2. 2Beginner · 6 min readHow to get your first 10 customers by handYour first ten customers almost always come from the founder doing direct, unscalable work: asking people you already know, showing up in communities where the problem is discussed, sending short personal messages to people who clearly have the problem, and onboarding each customer by hand. Ads and content rarely work at this stage because you do not yet know what message converts.
  3. 3Beginner · 6 min readWhere to launch a startup: venues, kit and sequencingLaunch a startup across several types of venue rather than one big day: product launch platforms, startup directories, niche communities, newsletters, review sites and your own audience. Prepare a reusable launch kit first, then sequence the launches over a few weeks so each one feeds the next.
  4. 4Intermediate · 6 min readProduct-market fit signals: what to measure and trustProduct-market fit shows up as behaviour you did not have to force: a retention curve that flattens instead of falling to zero, customers arriving through word of mouth, users who would be very disappointed to lose the product, and sales that get easier rather than harder. One signal alone can mislead, so look for several pointing the same way within a clearly defined segment.

Learning paths that cover this

Key terms

Bootstrapping
Building a business with your own money and customer revenue instead of outside investment.
Distribution
The repeatable way a product reaches the people who will buy it.
Early adopter
A customer who feels a problem so sharply they will try an unfinished product to solve it.
Go-to-market (GTM)
The plan for which customers you will sell to first, how you will reach them and how they will buy.
Minimum viable product (MVP)
The smallest version of a product that lets real customers get value and lets you learn whether the idea works.
North Star metric
The single measure that best captures the value customers get from your product and predicts long-term growth.
Product-market fit
The point at which a product satisfies a real market so well that demand pulls it forward with little pushing.
Retention cohort
A group of customers who started in the same period, tracked over time to see how many keep using or paying.
Full glossary →

Templates

  • Launch checklist and launch kit

    A practical launch checklist covering positioning, assets, channels, launch-day tasks and the follow-up that most launches skip.

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