How Top Brands Leverage User Perspectives to Gain Unfair Market Advantages

Welcome to The Innovators Insight.

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Developing revolutionary hardware is brutally hard.

Even with blood, sweat and tears, 9 out of 10 startups still fail.

They pour endless energy into sculpting physical prototypes.

Yet neglect to pressure test assumptions on what users want.

Instead, founders rely on intuition and anecdotal signals.

They play guessing games with pain points that snowball into months of wasted dev time.

Inside this week’s issue, I reveal the proven feedback framework used by billion dollar startups to rapidly iterate hardware to market fit.

Apply it now to eliminate uncertainty on what users want.

Start stacking wins today:

1. Identify your target customer segment

Before collecting feedback, be clear on who your target users are.

Get specific - zoom in on details like demographics, values, frustrations and goals.

This allows you to:

• Ask tailored questions that resonate

• Assess if feedback applies to your core customer base

Example: A startup making home brewing kits targets 25-40 yr old men who value self-reliance. They ask users about ease of use, customization and if kits aid their goal of mastering the brewing process.

2. Collect feedback early and often

Don't wait until after launch! Collecting input while still prototyping lets you rapidly iterate at lower cost.

Set up multiple touchpoints:

• Concept feedback: does the vision resonate?

• Prototype trials: observe how they interact

• Pilots: limited market release

Example: A startup making modular furniture shows rough sketches to gauge interest before making 3D prototypes. They tweak materials based on user testing before finalizing designs for production.

3. Use a mix of feedback channels

Go beyond just surveys and interviews.

Gather data through:

• Observation (watching users interact/use)

• App ratings, reviews, comments

• Support tickets and chat/email conversations

• Social media monitoring

This mix helps reveal deeper insights.

Example: An e-bike startup checks Youtube comments about ease of assembly during pilots. They realize instructions are confusing and make a video tutorial to include.

4. Sift through feedback carefully

Not all user perspectives align with your product vision or target segment.

Carefully review feedback and identify:

• Value-aligned nuggets: insights that matter to your core goals

• Outliers: feedback outside your target group or vision

This prevents over-indexing on pointless suggestions.

Example: A maker of electric bikes for seniors discounts feedback from 18 yr olds on adding stunt features. However, they address concerns about ease of getting on the bike.

5. Close the loop

Follow up with users when you act on feedback.

This builds trust and shows you value their perspective.

• Thank them specifically for the insight

• Explain how you adjusted the product based on their input

• Ask if the change better solves their problem

Example: An electric skateboard startup follows up with beta users when tweaking the braking mechanism for better control: "Thanks for reporting feeling unstable stopping quickly. We slowed the brake acceleration - does the new responsiveness address your concern?"

Final thoughts

Getting user perspectives early and often through a blend of channels will help you build products people genuinely want and need.

Remember to ground feedback in your core target segment.

Stay nimble, tweak based on insights even late in the process, and you’ll save time and money - resulting in happier customers.

Talk soon,

Roy

Whenever you're ready, there are 3 ways I can help you:

1. Raise crowdfunding: We can help you turn your product prototype into an investible asset. If you’ve got a working prototype, and need funding to scale, send me a direct message on Linkedin (click here) saying “funding” for more details on how we can help.
   

2. Validate your physical product concept: Got a concept (napkin sketch or full concept design) for a killer product? We want to see it. Click here to submit it for review.
   

3. Free Guide - Crowdfunding 101: How to prepare your physical product for a crowdfunding campaign. Click here to learn more.

How Top Brands Leverage User Perspectives to Gain Unfair Market Advantages