1. The Scientific Method for Startups
TL;DR > An experiment is not just "building something to see if people like it." It is a structured test with a clear hypothesis and a predefined success metric.
Founders often say they are "running an experiment," but what they are actually doing is launching a product and hoping for the best. A true validation experiment must be designed so that it can conclusively fail.
$50
The Cost of Truth
A well-designed validation experiment (like a Facebook ad driving traffic to a landing page) can often be run for under $50 in ad spend.
2. The 4 Parts of an Experiment
1. The Hypothesis: "I believe that [Target Customer] will pay $[Price] for [Solution] because it solves [Pain]." 2. The Minimum Success Criteria (MSC): "To consider this validated, 10 out of 100 visitors must click 'Buy Now'." 3. The Test: The actual asset you build (e.g., a landing page, an explainer video, a concierge service). 4. The Timeframe: "We will run this for 7 days."
Hypothesis Confidence Over Time
How running consecutive experiments derisks a startup.
3. The Most Common Experiment
The most popular and effective experiment for software startups is the landing page. Ready to build yours? Read our guide on How to Create a Landing Page to Validate a Startup Idea.