Idea to Startup How to Pick Your First Customer
10 snips
Nov 13, 2025 Choosing your first customer can make or break your startup. The right customer can drive growth, while the wrong one can doom you. Key characteristics include acute pain, strong knowledge, measurable success, influence in their network, and frequent interactions with your product. Founders learn to actively seek out and validate these traits before scaling their business. Plus, real-world examples help illustrate the path to early success.
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The One True Startup Story
- All successful startups begin by finding a customer with a unique, painful problem no one else has solved.
- Help that first customer be successful and their enthusiasm becomes your primary growth engine.
Hire Customers With Existing Inertia
- Pick first customers who already have inertia toward solving the problem rather than trying to create it.
- You can only get them to switch if they're already 'on their way' to a solution.
Lead With Pain, Not Benefits
- Focus on customer pain because pain builds trust; benefits rarely trigger action.
- Speak directly to the urgent problem to earn attention and credibility.
