Chapter 9 of 9

Tools & Resources

AI-powered tools and recommended resources for Customer Discovery.

Playbook Chapters
What You'll Find Here The essential tools for Customer Discovery - from interview script generators to assumption testing frameworks.
Recommended Workflow

Use these tools in sequence for best results:

  1. Interview Script Generator - Create unbiased customer interview questions
  2. Survey Designer - Build quantitative validation surveys
  3. Smoke Test Designer - Design behavioral experiments
  4. Problem-Solution Fit Analyzer - Synthesize your findings
Avoid Leading Questions

Don't ask questions that confirm your biases. Use open-ended discovery.

Avoid Compliment Traps

Don't pitch your solution. Focus on understanding the customer's problem.

LeanPivot AI Tools

AI-powered tools to help you execute this stage faster.

Lean Interview Guide

Generate customer interview scripts with best practices.

Insight Survey Builder

Design effective customer surveys that get real insights.

Market Signal Tester

Create smoke tests to validate demand before building.

Resonance Scorecard

Test messaging effectiveness with target customers.

Problem-Solution Fit Analyzer

Validate that your solution addresses the real problem.

Pivot Compass

Guide pivot or persevere decisions with evidence.

Browse Validation Tools

Recommended External Tools

Third-party tools that complement this stage of your journey.

Typeform

Surveys

Beautiful, conversational surveys with high completion rates.

Visit

Calendly

Scheduling

Easy scheduling for customer interviews.

Visit

Zoom

Video

Video calls for remote customer interviews.

Visit

Otter.ai

Transcription

AI transcription for interview recordings.

Visit

Dovetail

Research

Organize and analyze customer research.

Visit

Recommended Reading

Essential books for the Validation stage.

Running Lean: Iterate from Plan A to a Plan That Works
Running Lean: Iterate from Plan A to a Plan That Works

Ash Maurya's practical guide to Lean Canvas and continuous innovation.

$13-40 View on Amazon
Business Model Generation: A Handbook for Visionaries, Game Changers, and Challengers
Business Model Generation: A Handbook for Visionaries, Game Changers, and Challengers

Business Model Generation is a handbook for visionaries, game changers, and challengers striving to defy outmoded business models and design tomorrow's enterprises. By Alex Osterwalder & Yves Pigneur.

$7-23 View on Amazon
The Mom Test: How to Talk to Customers & Learn if Your Business is a Good Idea
The Mom Test: How to Talk to Customers & Learn if Your Business is a Good Idea

How to Talk to Customers & Learn if Your Business is a Good Idea by Rob Fitzpatrick.

$10-20 View on Amazon
Traction: How Any Startup Can Achieve Explosive Growth
Traction: How Any Startup Can Achieve Explosive Growth

Gabriel Weinberg's playbook for getting customers. 19 traction channels explained.

$15-20 View on Amazon

Tools & Resources

Software and services to accelerate your Validation stage.

Emergent.sh tools
Emergent.sh

Chat interface design tool for frontend and backend development. Coupon code: ROVNRMMG for 5% off on all payments

$25-100/month Learn More
Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life Hardcover courses
Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life Hardcover

Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life explores the Japanese concept of ikigai—the overlap of what you love, what you're good at, what you can be paid for, and what the world needs—as the key to a happier and longer life.

$0.99-14.99 Learn More
Lovable.dev tools
Lovable.dev

AI-powered platform that builds full-stack web applications and websites from simple, natural language prompts.

$0-50 Learn More
tools
Qoder

Qoder is a next-generation AI-powered coding platform developed by Alibaba, designed to go beyond simple code completion and act as an agentic coding environment for real-world software development. Here’s what makes it unique:

Learn More
Make.com: AI automation you can visually build and orchestrate in real time tools
Make.com: AI automation you can visually build and orchestrate in real time

Make brings no-code automation and AI agents into one visual-first platform so you can build with speed and scale with control.

$0-29 Learn More
Semrush: Data-Driven Marketing Tools to Grow Your Business software
Semrush: Data-Driven Marketing Tools to Grow Your Business

Semrush empowers marketers with comprehensive, AI-powered tools for SEO, content, and campaign growth—trusted by world-class brands and 10M+ professionals.

Learn More

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Next Steps

Once you've validated your assumptions through customer discovery, you're ready to assess Feasibility in Playbook 03.

Ready for Feasibility Analysis?

Your assumptions are validated. Now it's time to prove the business model works financially.

Go to Playbook 03: Feasibility
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Works Cited & Recommended Reading
Lean Startup & Innovation Accounting
Assumption Mapping & Testing
  • 7. Invest in Winning Ideas with Assumption Mapping. Miro
  • 10. Testing Business Ideas: Book Summary. Strategyzer
  • 11. Innovation Tools – The Assumption Mapper. Nico Eggert
  • 14. Business Testing: Is your Hypothesis Really Validated? Strategyzer
  • 16. An Introduction to Assumptions Mapping. Mural
  • 17. Assumption Mapping Techniques. Medium
Customer Interviews & The Mom Test
  • 8. Book Summary: The Mom Test by Rob Fitzpatrick. Medium
  • 22. The Mom Test for Better Customer Interviews. Looppanel
  • 23. The Mom Test by Rob Fitzpatrick [Actionable Summary]. Durmonski.com
  • 9. How to Evaluate Customer Validation in Early Stages. Golden Egg Check
Jobs-to-Be-Done Framework
  • 24. Jobs to be Done 101: Your Interviewing Style Primer. Dscout
  • 25. How To Get Results From Jobs-to-be-Done Interviews. Jobs-to-be-Done
  • 26. A Script to Kickstart JTBD Interviews. JTBD.info
Product-Market Fit & Surveys
  • 33. Sean Ellis Product Market Fit Survey Template. Zonka Feedback
  • 34. How to Use the Product/Market Fit Survey. Lean B2B
  • 35. Product Market-Fit Questions: Tips and Examples. Qualaroo
  • 36. Product/Market Fit Survey by Sean Ellis. PMF Survey
Pricing Validation Methods
Smoke Tests & Fake Door Testing
  • 43. Smoke Tests in Market Research - Complete Guide. Horizon
  • 45. Fake Door Testing - How it Works, Benefits & Risks. Chameleon.io
  • 52. High Hurdle Product Experiment. Learning Loop
  • 53. Fake Door Testing: Measuring User Interest. UXtweak
Conversion Benchmarks & Metrics
  • 46. Landing Page Statistics 2025: 97+ Stats. Marketing LTB
  • 47. Understanding Landing Page Conversion Rates 2025. Nudge
  • 49. What Is A Good Waitlist Conversion Rate? ScaleMath
  • 54. Average Ad Click Through Rates (CTRs). Smart Insights
Decision Making & Kill Criteria
  • 57. From Test Results to Business Decisions. M Accelerator
  • 58. Kill Criteria for Product Managers. Medium
  • 59. When to Kill Your Venture - Session Recap. Bundl

This playbook synthesizes research from Lean Startup methodology, Jobs-to-Be-Done theory, behavioral economics, and validation frameworks. Some book links may be affiliate links.