Stage: Explore

This is the initial stage where the founder conceives the idea to solve a problem he/she identified. It’s important at this stage to take a holistic view of the problem domain and broadly explore. This is where you explore different possibilities before locking down on a focused product concept.

You should study and analyze different paths and possibilities the new solution may take. Activities include brainstorming for idea generation as well as studying competitive offerings, and research publications from the marketplace. This phase is somewhat similar to Divergence and Discover phases of the Design Thinking process.

• Product Concept Pitch Desk: Create a pitch desk (or equivalent) to present the idea to different stakeholders such as investors, partners and potential customers.
• Competitor Analysis: Research into current market state, domain trends and study existing competition to understand the context.
• Financial viability: Evaluate business/financial viability to ensure long-term continuity and ROI.
• Personas: Analysis of related user personas to understand pains, gains and the behavior of users.
• Value Proposition: The primary value that the company promises to deliver to customers. This is the declaration of intent or company’s brand statement to consumers to communicate what the company stands for, how it operates, and why it deserves their sale.
• User Journey: Understand different paths a user takes to accomplish goals using the product.
• Mega Trend Analysis: Study current world & market trends to align the purpose of the product with a mega trend.
• Market Segmentation: Gather information about potential target markets and customer segments and the pros/cons of focusing on each.