The problem
People can be encouraging without needing a product. Survey responses and demo reactions are easy to collect, but can leave a founder with a distorted picture of urgency.
Our working thesis
A specific commitment—sharing a workflow, scheduling a trial, introducing the buyer or paying for a defined outcome—can reveal more than a broad statement of interest. The meaning of each commitment still depends on context.
What would help us learn
We would ask what the customer does today, what it costs to leave the problem unresolved and what changed after a trial. Evidence from people outside a founder’s immediate network helps test whether the value extends beyond goodwill.
Show us the moment a customer moved from ‘interesting’ to doing something differently.