Product Validation Testing

Product validation testing is a way to check that your new product, service or feature meets a real-life need of your clients and prospects – before you go into development. Is there a demand for the product? Is there another development that’s more important to your target market? Would this be a ‘nice to have’, rather than a ‘need to have’? How does this affect their willingness to pay a higher price tag? 

For some reason, we still can’t see into the future, so there are no guarantees of launch success here. But product validation testing tips the odds in your favor by asking your clients and prospects these questions before you commit time and money. 

Investing in assumptions is never a comfortable place to be. Product validation testing is important because you’re no longer assuming that clients will think your ideas are as great as you do – you’ll have actionable insights based on real data gathered from exactly the right people. Ultimately, this reduces the risk of you pursuing an idea that turns out to be a lemon. 

By involving this high level of active listening to your clients and prospects, you strengthen your relationships with your target audience. By continuously doing product validation testing, you build trust and cement customer loyalty. You end up with the best product or service on the market and delighted clients.

You’ve already got nuanced buyer personas for each member of your buying teams with their needs, aspirational and pain points clearly identified. You’ve also researched the market demand for new products or services – which usually leads to identifying which particular problem will be most profitable for you to solve. At this point, you should begin product validation testing. 

As soon as you’ve got an explainable concept for a new product, service or feature, start testing whether or not it’s something your target audience considers worthwhile. 

Building product validation testing into your wider research strategy gives you constant feedback from your customers. It’s not something you just do at the start of a new development. By continuously checking in with how clients feel about your products, services and features you can adapt to changes in their needs with dexterity and speed. 

Feasibility testing and user testing are the two primary types of product validation testing. 

Feasibility testing evaluates all the practicalities involved in product development. This requires the correct combination of these different types of research:

• Market feasibility study to determine potential profitability and SWOT analysis of your position and the competition’s
• An assessment of your technical capacity to complete the project
• Economic feasibility study to ascertain costs, investment required and expected ROI
• Legal and regulatory considerations
• Operational feasibility – how does this project sit in your organization? Is everyone on board?

User validation testing is, as the title suggests, testing involving potential buyers. This can be done remotely, in-person, and with or without a moderator to lead the test. In some circumstances ‘guerilla testing’ produces useful insights, asking random individuals their opinion as they pass through a public space. 

Constructing a solid product roadmap for any new idea involves strategic thinking that encompasses market demand, industry trends, and competitive analysis. Use your initial product validation testing to clearly define your goals for this development project. Run market analysis to determine your specific target audience, the size and profitability of this market, demand for the service or product, main competitors and your differentiating factors that make you the best option. Try out an MVP, beta version, smoke test, or prototype on a group of your ideal clients and analyze their responses carefully. Make any improvements based on the insights from these test results.