When looking for resources about the best way to launch a software business, I found many useful articles, but not very many consolidated resources which laid everything out in an easy to digest manner. I wanted to document the entire process to help structure my own thinking, as well as giving those who come after a roadmap to follow. After I launch, I will be reporting on the success of each segment of my plan.

Below is a lightweight tools we used at ThoughtWorks to fill a gap this gap and get our project headed in the right direction long before the first line of code every got written.

Customer development is a proven approach to drive rapid product adoption. Get started for free by creating your own initial customer development survey below or view an example survey

Learn how to do Customer Development, an essential component of the Lean Startup philosophy. Learn how to:
Find prospects and how to approach them
Develop and iterate your "Minimal Viable Products" (MVPs)
Segment markets, position products and when to pivot
Validate before scaling

I've been getting really into the idea of "lean startup", which is being forwarded by folks like Eric Ries and Steve Blank. There there are TWO slide decks that I think capture the core of these ideas, and I'd like to share them with you.