How Founders Can Immerse Themselves in User Environments

I love watching our customers use our product 𝗟𝗜𝗩𝗘 in their office. It’s one of the most revelatory experiences I have as a founder. At Y Combinator, we learned that the two best uses of a founder’s time are: 1) Building product 2) Talking to users We take this advice literally, and love visiting our customers in person to see them use Clueso (YC W23). It allows us to identify their problems on the spot and immediately ship features or fixes to address them. Watching users in action gives insights that no Zoom call can match. Here’s why: 1️⃣ 𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗳𝗲𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘂𝗻𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗳, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘄𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗱𝗶𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺. Seeing users live will clearly highlight which features are catching their attention, and which ones are going unnoticed.  2️⃣ 𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗱𝗺𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗴𝗴𝗹𝗲𝗱, so they will hold back on telling you how bad their experience actually was. 𝗢𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿, so they’ll over-emphasize minor problems that are actually not worth fixing. 3️⃣ 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗮 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹, 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗹𝗹 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝗮 𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗿’𝘀 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. Some customers will water down how bad the experience was so you don’t feel bad. Others will exaggerate so they appear smart. Seeing real-time reactions, frustrations, and “aha” moments tells a clearer story. All-in-all, it’s an exercise that I’d highly recommend everyone to do. It will give you deep insights into: 1) Whether the problem you’re solving is actually worthwhile 2) How well your product delivers on its promise 3) How customers actually perceive and experience your product #ux #productmanagement #startup

Founders who actually use their own product and become part of their target audience get to really understand the pains. Being a founder who uses your own product puts you in your customers' shoes. You see firsthand what works, what doesn’t and where the pain points are. This insider view is priceless because you really understand the needs and frustrations of your audience. When you live your users experience, you build real empathy. You feel their struggles and can create solutions that truly help. This goes beyond just data and survey — it’s about living the same experience. Using your product often helps you spot small but important fixes that might get missed otherwise. These little tweaks can really boost user satisfaction and product quality. Plus being an active user lets you connect with your community better. You join conversations and get direct feedback, keeping you in touch with your users' changing needs. So scratch your own itch and solve problems that you’ve personally experience because this can be a huge competitive advantage.

As a 𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 or 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗿, you've likely heard: "Talk to your customers/users frequently." But here's a twist - it's not just about talking; it's about 𝗮𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗜𝗚𝗛𝗧 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. 🤔💡 Imagine being an 8-year-old kid who discovers a food recipe book on your mother's shelf. You think, "Aha! An app for food recipes would be brilliant!" Everyone can download it from the app store, easy and cheap, right? You rush to your mother, bubbling with enthusiasm, and she, out of love, praises your idea. But here's the catch - her mother bought that book last year and she never used it. 😬 She's not your user... 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗰 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗽: selling ideas and solutions instead of truly understanding the user. It's about diving deep into their problems. 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹, 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗱𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝗯𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. Instead of asking, "Do you think a food recipe app is a good idea?" ask, "Can you tell me about the last time you looked for a new recipe? How did you find it, and what did you like or dislike about the process?” 𝗧𝗮𝗹𝗸 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮: "What challenges do you face when trying to decide what to cook for dinner?" 𝗦𝗲𝗲𝗸 𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀: "How often do you try new recipes, and where do you usually find them?" 𝗔𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗱 𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮 𝗱𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗯𝗶𝗮𝘀: "What's the most important thing for you when you're looking for cooking inspiration?" -- I recently drew immense inspiration from "𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗠𝗼𝗺'𝘀 𝗧𝗲𝘀𝘁" by Rob Fitzpatrick , a game-changing read that illuminates the art of understanding customers and users beyond surface-level interactions. This book is a must-read for anyone looking to genuinely connect with their audience and craft solutions that resonate. 🌟📖 -- 𝗥𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗵𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗸𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗼𝗯𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻. #productmanagement #customerinsights #entrepreneurship #userexperience #startup #innovation #leanstartups #designthinking #businessstrategies #marketresearch