When building a business, it’s easy to get swept up in your own ideas. You’ve got a vision, a plan, and a product you’re sure people will love. But, here’s the truth: no matter how good you think your product is, what really matters is what your customers think. It is customers who experience a problem and so, ultimately, it is customers who will decide whether your product solves this problem well enough to be worth paying for. Investors call this “problem solution fit” and securing this is vital for building a viable business, but also for attracting investors. Achieving problem solution fit shows investors you’re serious about delivering what the market wants.
In this blog, we’ll dive into how to gather feedback that demonstrates problem solution fit, and explain why it’s so crucial for shaping your business and investors.
1. Listening to Your Customers Builds a Better Product
Customers buy products (and/or services) to solve a problem. They may not actually express it like that, but that is what is behind all purchase decisions. You may think you have developed the best product/service since sliced bread was invented but, in truth, that is only true if your customers agree. Your customers are the ones using your product every day, so their opinions are the ones that count. By using your product, customers can provide feedback that highlights areas for improvement you may not have considered – or they may use your product/service in ways you hadn’t envisaged. So, customer feedback highlights what’s working well but, more importantly, where things are falling short. This is the key to getting to problem solution fit.
Regularly gathering feedback, whether through surveys, interviews, or even just listening on social media, helps you fine-tune your product, which improves the customer experience and secures you problem solution fit. Why this matters for investors: Investors are on the lookout for businesses that have strong product-market fit because they know that happy customers drive growth. If you can show that you’re listening to your customers and continuously improving based on their feedback, it proves you’re committed to delivering a product people genuinely want.
2. Proving Demand and Traction
When investors look at your business, they want to see one thing above all: demand. Customer feedback is a brilliant way to demonstrate that there’s real interest in what you’re offering. If customers are taking the time to provide feedback, it’s a strong indicator that they care about your product and want to see it improve.
Positive feedback and testimonials can also act as social proof, showing potential investors that people are excited by and want to use your product. It’s one thing to have a product out in the market, but it’s another to have a growing base of users or customers actively engaging with it.
Why this matters for investors: Investors want to minimise risk, and seeing that there’s demand for your product helps de-risk their decision. Product engagement and positive customer testimonials are a strong signal you are gaining initial traction.
Top Tip: Carefully select quotes from customer feedback and put them into your pitch deck, showing investors – in your customers’ own words – why people are using and love your product.
Check out our blog on building traction here.
3. Feedback Helps You Prioritise Features and Fixes
It’s easy to get bogged down in the details when running a business, especially when you’re passionate about your product. But trying to do everything at once can lead to wasted time and resources. Listening to customer feedback helps you focus on what matters most to them. It can give you a clear picture of what’s essential and what’s just a “nice-to-have”, which helps you set appropriate priorities for the business.
Why this matters for investors: Investors love to see efficient use of resources. If you can show that you’re making smart, customer-driven decisions about where to focus your efforts, it demonstrates that you’re managing your business effectively. It also reassures them that their investment will be used wisely.
Top Tip: Instead of guessing which features to build next, or which bugs need fixing, let customer feedback drive your product roadmap. This not only helps you stay on track but also ensures you’re investing your time and money in the areas that will have the biggest impact.
4. Building Stronger Customer Relationships to ensure problem solution fit
When you actively ask for and respond to feedback, it sends a message to your customers that you care about their experience. This helps build stronger relationships and fosters a sense of loyalty, as well as helping you keep focused on problem solution fit. Customers who feel heard and valued are more likely to stick around, recommend your product to others, and even become repeat buyers.
Why this matters for investors: A loyal customer base is one of the best assets a business can have. Investors will be far more interested in a company that has built strong relationships with its customers, as it indicates long-term stability and potential for growth.
Top Tip: Share how you are responding to your customer’s suggestions with your customers, in your social media and emails. When customers can see you are responding to their feedback, they are far more likely to be forgiving if something goes wrong.
5. Adapting to Market Shifts is all part of getting to problem solution fit
The market is constantly changing, and what worked yesterday might not meet customers’ needs tomorrow. Customer feedback gives you real-time insights into market trends and shifts in demand. By keeping your ear to the ground and listening to what your customers are saying, you can quickly adapt and pivot when necessary.
Why this matters for investors: A company that can quickly adapt to market changes is far more attractive to investors. It shows that you’re not just riding a short-term wave, but that you have the foresight to make adjustments and stay relevant in a changing landscape.
Top Tip: Being agile and responsive to changes in the market can also help you spot new opportunities. For example to develop a new product to compliment what you already offer, or the opportunity to take an existing product to a new market. Investors love this as it builds incremental revenue which, ultimately, helps your business grow.
6. Using Feedback as a Marketing Tool
Customer feedback doesn’t just help you improve your product so that you secure problem solution fit, it’s also a powerful marketing tool. Positive reviews, testimonials, and case studies can all be used to build credibility and attract new customers. If people see that others are happy with your product, they’re more likely to give it a try themselves.
Why this matters for investors: Investors love a business that can generate organic growth through word-of-mouth and social proof. If you’re using customer feedback as a marketing tool, it shows that you’re resourceful and that your product has a strong reputation in the market.
Top Tip: Sharing customer feedback publicly shows your business is transparent, which helps you build trust and credibility with customers. Potential customers and investors can see that you’re not hiding behind a polished façade, but that you’re actively engaging with your community and working to make your product the best it can be.
Securing Problem Solution Fit Is what really launches Your Business
At the end of the day, if you don’t have a problem, you don’t have a business. You just have a product (or service). It is paying customers that signal you have a business. Looking at it this way, customer feedback becomes one of your most valuable resources – and it’s free! It helps you build a better product, proves demand, and strengthens relationships with your customers. But beyond that, it’s a powerful signal to investors that you’re running a business that’s responsive, adaptable, and customer-focused – the qualities that drive growth, which all investors want.
By involving your customers in your product development, regularly gathering and acting on this feedback, you are on the path to securing problem solution fit which will not only improve your chances of success, but also make your business far more appealing to investors. So, if you want to unlock funding, stop reading this and go and start talking to your customers!
Want to dig deeper into this topic? Why not have a look at:
Investors Appeal: Here’s 1 Interesting Truth To Make You Stand Out To Investors
Pitch Deck Secrets: These 3 Things Will Make Investors Love You
- How Securing Problem Solution Fit Builds Your Business and Attracts Investors - January 13, 2025
- How To Build a Fractional Team to Achieve More as a Solo Founder - January 13, 2025
- How to Speak an Investor’s Language: Part 2- More Terms You Need to Know - December 19, 2024
