About Your Business Thesis

Every-time I launch a startup, I know going in my business thesis isn't going to work.

Here's why I'm not worried ...

I'm not worried because a have a very defined process for vetting and perfecting a business/revenue model — BEFORE we ever launch.

One of the tools I use to challenge my business assumptions is Lean Business Canvas (LBC). Using the LBC approach I challenge nine critical areas of my thesis, over and over.

We are ruthless in this process to avoid any possibility of a false launch. That is, not achieving product-market fit, a very costly mistake.

Example: LBC #1 Segments

- The Unvetted Answer: Small Business Owners
- The Vetted Answer: Founder with 2-5M in B2B revs

The unvetted answer is vague.

The vetted answer is very specific. A sub-niche where we can curate a specific list of businesses to market to.

See the difference?

As I go through all nine areas of LBC, we begin to connect the dots of every part of our model. It becomes very precise. Seasoned.

The pre-vetted thesis -vs- the post-vetted thesis are different animals. I know this going in, I would NEVER EVER launch anything, not even a new campaign or product without vetting every assumption.

I take every venture through this annually to ensure our best chance to reach our goals.

Anything less is plain winging it. (amateur hour)

About 95% of founders and ventures seeking funding miss this. This is all part of investor readiness. (having a pitch deck is not sufficient)

I believe this is the big culprit responsible for most business failures, funded or bootstrapped.

Regardless of the growth-stage of your business, schedule a time with your team to vet your thesis.

Do it before the end of the year.

More likely than not, your model is outdated and not at peak performance. What's the give-a-way? Inconsistent revenue.

-Gerald