Lean Startup Essentials - March 2012

Lean Startup Essentials

How to save time, money & headaches

Lukas [email protected]

Slides licensed under CC-BY-NC-SA. Lean Startup is trademarked by Eric Ries.Business Model Canvas is created by Alex Osterwalder and licensed under CC-BY-SA.


mailto:[email protected]



About Me

• Entrepreneur(Efficient Cloud, Soup.io)

• Member of Spark59(Lean Canvas, Running Lean)

• http://founderswiki.com/

http://founderswiki.com

http://founderswiki.com


Focus

• #1 - Presenting to Investors & Press

• #2 - Make Something People Want


Based on the work by these folks

& many others


WOW!It works!

Why am Idoing this?

Its gonnabe awesome!

o o o oo o


Why am Idoing this?

o o


WOW!It works!

o o

Product/Market Fit

Why am Idoing this?

o o


How can wehack growth?


How can we reach Product/Market

Fit?

Startup: Temporary organization used to

search for a repeatable and scalable business model.

As defined by Steve Blank.



We need toexperiment

& learn.

Not execute blindly.


1. ?

2. ?

3. Growth!


1. ?

2. Run Experiments

3. Growth!


1. Understand your Business Model

2. Run Experiments

3. Growth!

Understand Your Business Model

#1: The Lean CanvasLean Startup Essentials

The Business Model Canvas


Alex Osterwalder - Business Model Generationhttp://businessmodelgeneration.com

http://businessmodelgeneration.com

http://businessmodelgeneration.com

The Lean CanvasBM Canvas adjusted for early-stage


Ash Maurya - Running Leanhttp://book.runningleanhq.com

http://book.runningleanhq.com

http://book.runningleanhq.com


Problem

Top 3 problems

Solution

Top 3 features

Unique Value Proposition

Single, clear, compelling message that states why you are different and worth buying



Unfair Advantage

Can’t be easily copied or bought

Customer Segments

Target customers

Problem

Top 3 problems

Key Metrics

Key activities you measure




Single, clear, compelling message that states why you are different and worth buying Channels

Path to customers

Customer Segments

Target customers

Cost Structure

Customer Acquisition CostsDistribution CostsHostingPeople, etc.

Cost Structure


Cost Structure


Revenue Streams

Revenue ModelLife Time ValueRevenue Gross Margin

Revenue Streams


Revenue Streams


Customer Segments

• Persona of yourprototypical (early) customer

• Narrow group of people that buy/use your product

• Marketing is easier if you have a narrow customer segment


Key Partners Key Activities Value PropositionValue Proposition

CustomerRelationships

Customer Segments

Key Partners

Key Resources

Value PropositionValue Proposition

Channels

Customer Segments

Cost StructureCost StructureCost Structure Revenue StreamsRevenue StreamsRevenue Streams

Problem

• What is the use case?

• What are the problems the customer is trying to solve?

• These might be things they’ve already started building in house, because there is an active need


Problem Key Activities Value PropositionValue Proposition


Customer Segments

Problem

Key Resources


Channels

Customer Segments


Value Proposition

• Single, clear, compelling message that turns an unaware visitor into an interested prospect

• Your elevator pitch

• What you put on yourlanding page




Customer Segments

Key Partners

Key Resources


Channels

Customer Segments


Solution

• Whats the Minimum viable product (MVP) ?

• Minimal set of functionality to solve each problem of the customer




Customer Segments

Key Partners

Key Resources


Channels

Customer Segments


Channels

• How does the customer learn about your product?

• B2B and B2C vastly different!

• SEM, SEO, Friend Invites, Social Media, Direct Sales, Tradeshows, PR, Content Marketing, etc.




Customer Segments

Key Partners

Key Resources


Channels

Customer Segments


Revenue Streams

• How much is the problem worth to the customer?

• Not how much it costs you to implement the solution

• Avoid Free and FreemiumIts just a marketing tactic!




Customer Segments

Key Partners

Key Resources


Channels

Customer Segments


This document is aliveand easy to update

(not like your rusty old business plan)



Run Experiments

#2: Run Experiments


Build-Measure-Learn

#2: Run Experiments


Launch=

First iteration

#2: Run Experiments


Speed of iterationbeats

Quality of iteration

#2: Run Experiments


How can youexperiment faster?

#2: Run Experiments


Instead of“Will it work?”

ask“Do customers care?”

#2: Run Experiments

Customer Interviews

30 min in-person withyour prototypical customer

People like talking about their field - explore their worldview.

Lean Startup Essentials #2: Run Experiments

How to conduct an interview


DO NOT sell them your solution

1. Set context & tell your story2. Tell your problem hypothesis 3. Listen to their worldview4. Ask for follow up / references

#2: Run Experiments

Online Market Tests:

Google AdwordsFake Landing Page with

“Signup to be notified when we launch”“Can we call you to ask a couple of Qs?”

Lean Startup Essentials #2: Run Experiments


MVP: MinimumViable Product

#2: Run Experiments


Example:Idealab’s CarsDirect

#2: Run Experiments

Back in ’98


Example:mjam.at

#2: Run Experiments


Ignore at your own risk.

Why am Idoing this?

o o


Thanks!

Lukas [email protected]

Slides licensed under CC-BY-NC-SA. Lean Startup is trademarked by Eric Ries.Business Model Canvas is created by Alex Osterwalder and licensed under CC-BY-SA.

