How to "build something people want"

A paradox that causes too many startups to fail

You’re well aware of the legendary Paul Graham mantra: “Build something people want.”

And then, you might look at the startup failure rates and ask: “Why are we so bad at building things people want?”

The answer, I believe, is deeply confusing: It’s not possible to build something people want when you’re focused on building something people want.

Paradoxical? Let’s untangle it:

Everything in the business world is focused on “Supply”: What we build and what we control. Versus “Demand”: What we don’t control (aka: what customers want to achieve, what they value, etc.)

When we view the world from the Supply lens, we focus on our product, our goals, our business. We see the customer as a potential product-user, which means we miss what they are really trying to accomplish.

The supply lens - aka the “build something” lens - is why it is nearly impossible to resonate with customers, why nobody cares about our product, and why GTM is so inefficient and ineffective.

For example: When I was trying to build and sell an employee scheduling software, I came up with the top problems and pain points employers had with scheduling. These were all real pain points - employers could complain about them for days. But “scheduling pain points” did not drive action; this was supply spearfishing for demand, not real demand.

The solution is not “better discovery,” as you’d believe if you read the Mom Test. (A great book, but misses the concept of demand and therefore is nearly impossible to effectively follow. You have to kill the supply-side in your brain.) The solution is demand-side thinking, where you try to figure out what buyers are actually trying to accomplish. You try to answer questions like:

• What projects are on this person’s critical path? What do they NEED to accomplish?

• What caused somebody else just like them to switch (for example) scheduling systems, and how did they ultimately decide across their different options?

• Simply: What would they pay me to help them accomplish, or what would they pay me to take off their plate?

Understanding the answers to these kinds of questions on the demand side is the key to building something people actually want - and, paradoxically, you won’t find them if you’re focused on “building something.”

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PS:

• PMF Camp 3 starts April 1. If you’re struggling to find demand for your startup, I encourage you to apply ASAP. Only a few slots left. More info HERE.

• I recorded a free, 45-minute video masterclass on product-market fit (access here). It goes through everything I’ve learned about PMF + $0-$1M ARR that I wish someone had told me years ago. What matters & doesn’t, how to execute, and where founders get lost. Watch it, share it, send feedback!