Idea Validator Pro

Purpose

This skill helps you rapidly and objectively assess product ideas before investing time and resources in development. It prevents months of wasted effort on ideas that lack real market demand.

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when:

• You have a new SaaS or product idea and want to assess its potential
• You're uncertain if an idea is worth pursuing
• You need objective, data-driven evaluation before committing resources
• You want to understand your idea's strengths and weaknesses
• You need specific recommendations to improve an idea
• You're deciding between multiple ideas and need comparison

Validation Process

Phase 1: Discovery & Research

ALWAYS start with comprehensive research before making any judgments.

1. Market Research

Investigate:

• Existing competitors and their solutions
• Market size and growth trends
• Target audience and their pain points
• Pricing models in the market
• Market maturity (emerging vs. saturated)

Key Questions:

• Who are the top 5-10 competitors?
• What do they do well? What gaps exist?
• How big is the addressable market?
• Is the market growing, stable, or declining?

2. Demand Verification

Check for real demand signals:

• Search Reddit, Twitter/X, Indie Hackers for discussions
• Analyze Google Trends for search volume
• Look for complaints about existing solutions
• Identify workarounds people currently use
• Check Product Hunt, Hacker News for similar launches

Evidence to Find:

• Are people actively searching for solutions?
• Do existing products have waiting lists?
• Are there recurring complaints in communities?
• What alternative solutions are people cobbling together?

3. Technical Assessment

Evaluate build complexity:

• Required features for MVP
• Technical implementation complexity
• Available tools/services to accelerate development
• Realistic time estimate for solo developer
• Required technical skills

Considerations:

• Can this be built in 2-4 weeks by one person?
• Are there existing APIs/services to leverage?
• What's the minimum viable feature set?
• What technical risks exist?

4. Monetization Analysis

Assess revenue potential:

• How existing competitors monetize
• Willingness to pay (WTP) evidence
• Average revenue per user (ARPU) in market
• Viable pricing models (subscription, one-time, freemium)
• Customer acquisition cost (CAC) indicators

Key Metrics:

• What are competitors charging?
• What's the typical ARPU in this space?
• Is there evidence people pay for this?
• What's the realistic revenue potential?

Phase 2: Scoring Framework

Evaluate ideas using 5 criteria (10 points each, 50 total):

1. Market Crowdedness (10 points)

• 1-3 points: Extremely crowded, high competition
• 4-6 points: Moderate competition, differentiation opportunities exist
• 7-10 points: Less crowded, new opportunities or underserved niches

Scoring Factors:

• Number of direct competitors
• Similarity of their value propositions
• Entry barriers
• Availability of unaddressed niches

2. Real Demand (10 points)

• 1-3 points: Weak or questionable demand signals
• 4-6 points: Moderate demand, needs additional validation
• 7-10 points: Strong, verified demand with clear evidence

Scoring Factors:

• People actively seeking solutions (not just talking about it)
• Evidence of payment willingness
• Frequency of the problem
• Existence of workarounds (signals real need)

3. Solo Builder Feasibility (10 points)

• 1-3 points: Very complex, requires large team or deep expertise
• 4-6 points: Possible but challenging, 4-6 weeks
• 7-10 points: Fully achievable by solo developer in 2-4 weeks

Scoring Factors:

• Essential features for MVP
• Technical complexity
• Availability of existing tools/services
• Realistic time estimate

4. Monetization Potential (10 points)

• 1-3 points: Weak monetization path, unclear WTP
• 4-6 points: Possible but not guaranteed
• 7-10 points: Clear monetization strategy, verified WTP

Scoring Factors:

• Evidence of payment for similar products
• Average ARPU in the market
• Viable pricing models
• Realistic revenue expectations

5. Interest Factor (10 points)

• 1-3 points: Generic, boring problem
• 4-6 points: Moderately interesting
• 7-10 points: Exciting, compelling opportunity

Scoring Factors:

• Personal excitement about solving this for 6+ months
• Emotional connection to the problem
• Uniqueness or innovation of approach
• Story-telling and marketing potential

Phase 3: Final Verdict

Based on total score (0-50):

🚀 BUILD IT (35-50 points)

High-priority idea with strong potential across multiple dimensions.

Next Steps:

1. Create detailed MVP specification
2. Set 2-4 week build timeline
3. Identify 10-20 target users for early feedback
4. Plan validation strategy (landing page, early access)

🤔 MAYBE (25-34 points)

Promising potential but needs improvement or additional validation.

Next Steps:

1. Address identified weaknesses
2. Conduct additional validation (interviews, surveys)
3. Consider pivoting specific aspects
4. Re-evaluate after improvements

⛔ SKIP IT (0-24 points)

High risk with fundamental issues. Find a better opportunity.

Next Steps:

1. Document learnings from this idea
2. Identify what attracted you to it
3. Use insights to generate alternative ideas
4. Move on without regret

Output Format

Provide structured validation report:

# Idea Validation Report: [Idea Name]

## Overall Score: X/50

### Verdict: [BUILD IT / MAYBE / SKIP IT]

---

## Detailed Analysis

### 1. Market Assessment (X/10)
**Score:** X
**Finding:** [Brief summary of market state]
**Key Insights:**
- [Insight 1]
- [Insight 2]
- [Insight 3]

### 2. Demand Verification (X/10)
**Score:** X
**Finding:** [Demand assessment]
**Evidence Found:**
- [Evidence 1 with source]
- [Evidence 2 with source]
- [Evidence 3 with source]

### 3. Technical Feasibility (X/10)
**Score:** X
**Estimate:** [Time to build MVP]
**Challenges:**
- [Challenge 1]
- [Challenge 2]

### 4. Monetization Potential (X/10)
**Score:** X
**Strategy:** [Recommended approach]
**Market Data:**
- [Pricing example 1]
- [Pricing example 2]
- [Market size estimate]

### 5. Interest Factor (X/10)
**Score:** X
**Assessment:** [How compelling is this]

---

## Competitive Landscape

### Top Competitors:

**1. [Competitor Name]** - [Brief description]
- Strengths: [What they do well]
- Weaknesses: [What they do poorly]
- Pricing: [Price point]
- Market position: [Their position]

**2. [Competitor Name]** - [Description]
[Repeat format]

### Market Gaps Identified:
- [Gap 1]
- [Gap 2]
- [Gap 3]

---

## Recommendations

### High-Impact Improvements:
1. [Specific, actionable recommendation 1]
2. [Specific, actionable recommendation 2]
3. [Specific, actionable recommendation 3]

### Differentiation Strategies:
- [How to stand out from competitors]
- [Unique positioning suggestion]
- [Potential unique value proposition]

### Validation Next Steps:
1. [Specific validation action 1]
2. [Specific validation action 2]
3. [Specific validation action 3]

---

## 🚩 Red Flags
[If any critical warnings exist, list them here]

---

## Final Recommendation

[2-3 paragraph summary with specific, actionable guidance]

Best Practices

Research Phase

• Be thorough: Spend at least 30 minutes on research
• Use multiple sources: Don't rely on single data point
• Look for patterns: Recurring complaints signal real problems
• Check financials: Look at actual revenue data when available
• Verify claims: Don't trust marketing material alone

Scoring Phase

• Be honest: Don't inflate scores based on personal bias
• Use evidence: Base scores on data, not assumptions
• Compare fairly: Benchmark against successful similar products
• Consider constraints: Factor in solo builder realities
• Think long-term: Is this sustainable beyond initial launch?

Recommendation Phase

• Be specific: Vague advice like "improve marketing" doesn't help
• Prioritize impact: Focus on highest-leverage improvements
• Be realistic: Don't recommend 6-month pivots
• Provide alternatives: If idea is weak, suggest related angles
• Be encouraging: But honest about fundamental issues

Anti-Patterns to Avoid

Don't Do:

• Confirmation bias: Don't look only for evidence supporting the idea
• Ignore red flags: Address serious concerns directly
• Surface-level research: "10 competitors exist" isn't enough
• Vague scoring: Every score needs specific justification
• Generic recommendations: "Do more market research" isn't actionable

Do This Instead:

• Seek disconfirming evidence: Look for reasons why it might fail
• Name concerns clearly: Be explicit about problems
• Deep competitive analysis: Understand why competitors succeed/fail
• Evidence-based scoring: Link each score to specific findings
• Actionable specifics: "Interview 10 target users about X problem"

Example Prompts

Basic Validation

Use idea-validator-pro to assess this product idea:
[2-3 sentence description of your idea]

Detailed Validation

I need complete validation analysis for this idea:

**Idea:** [Detailed description]
**Target Users:** [Who will use this]
**Problem Solved:** [What pain point]

Conduct thorough research and provide:
- Top 10 competitor analysis
- Demand verification from Reddit, Twitter, Indie Hackers
- Technical complexity assessment
- Pricing data and recommendations
- Specific next steps

Quick Decision

Quick validation needed:
[Idea description]

Provide:
- BUILD IT / MAYBE / SKIP IT verdict
- Top 3 supporting reasons
- #1 most important recommendation

Integration with Workflow

This skill works best when used:

1. Before starting development - Save weeks of wasted effort
2. During idea generation - Evaluate multiple concepts quickly
3. When pivoting - Assess if new direction is better
4. For prioritization - Compare multiple ideas objectively
5. Before pitching - Strengthen your case with data

Success Criteria

A well-executed validation should:

• ✅ Include 5-10 competitor profiles with real data
• ✅ Cite specific evidence from communities/forums
• ✅ Provide realistic time estimates
• ✅ Include actual pricing data from market
• ✅ Give 3+ actionable next steps
• ✅ Be brutally honest about weaknesses
• ✅ Complete research in 15-30 minutes

Resources

For deep-dive analysis, see:

• references/VALIDATION_FRAMEWORKS.md - Detailed validation methodologies
• references/RESEARCH_SOURCES.md - Where to find best data
• references/RED_FLAGS.md - Common warning signs
• scripts/demand_analyzer.py - Automated demand signal detection

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Remember: The goal isn't to tell you "yes" or "no" - it's to help you make an informed decision and avoid expensive mistakes. Good validation can save months of wasted effort.