Hey everyone👋, I’m Ritika a full-time Product Marketer, previously Head of Product Marketing, founder & advisor to early & growth-stage startups. Welcome to the 43rd newsletter post.

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Have you ever tried to explain your startup to someone at an event or to a new customer or to someone random?

A few months back I had a conversation with a founder, it took them over 10 minutes to explain their startup to me. Then we were discussing if their product was right for their users or not & why the retention and growth are so low. They had doubts and they were frustrated because they don’t know what to do and it has been 3 years.

So I asked them to describe to me in detail their product, customers and vision.

Our product helps (the niche) solve (this) problem. (This) is what will be the end results. Once they get on landing page, they can see & compare out of 3 pricing plans that fits them the most. Once they have done this, they’ll get (this). And we want to make it the best product in the country and ultimately expand it internationally. We are trying to be the next (insert successful startup here) for (this industry). Because we legit know that there is this problem & we can solve it with our product.

Not wanting to lower their self-esteem, I asked more questions trying to understand their vision beyond what they had just told me & figure out what possibly can be improved. Because whatever we talked about, looked like this to me 👇

how to describe your startup idea — And no I didn’t got them at like “uber”. 🙄

Founders sometimes place more emphasis on the idea than actually having a clear vision that makes sense from the point of view of success, customers and product.

For me, the first thing was convincing the founder that a big revamp is needed on the vision side. It wasn’t about the idea validation or changing the complete product or creating a new persona but knowing the North star.

To know optimal what can be achieved over time.
What the future or result looks like
Knowing clear direction
To drive inspiration throughout the team
To help onboard teams and investors

Unfortunately, it is rare that the vision is already set during the founding process of the startup. It usually happens in the growth phase. So, a little help in the illusion can bring big changes.

Filter out the unnecessary

Visions are a great help to remove the fancy stuff that you want to add to make the product look great without them making any sense. You run every big business decision through this filter and see if it fits.

As you talk to customers, see what trends & get ideas every day, you might feel like you’re missing out on the possible future. If you feel like this is something you should add to your product, run it through the filter. If it is a YES, go with it and if it’s a NO, then it’s a waste.

Know the direction to go

Once a clear vision, inspires faster actions.

Oftentimes why we don’t like creating a vision, because it takes effort - putting it down in words. The way boring it may sound, it’s the most important part of your business success.

An idea in mind is our imagination - what we want it to be like & we are ready to go in vague directions. But the idea clearly written down that is evaluated based on data, observation and based on a thesis is the vision of a startup & gives the direction which way to lead. A clear direction will also help with creativity & saves a lot of time.

Sale to build team, customers and get investors

“If you hire people just because they can do a job, they’ll work for your money. But if you hire people who believe what you believe, they’ll work for you with blood and sweat and tears.” — Simon Sinek

To lead a great team you need to explain why you are doing it, what you are doing, for whom you are doing and how you are doing it instead of manipulating people to act.

Founders are the pitchers, they should know how to sell the product to customers & to investors (when needed). For both, having a clear vision is important. Rather than taking the next 10 minutes to grumble about what your product is, be clear with your vision & repeatedly talk about it to everyone.

Also, read🗞:

Why building a winning product experience matter?

Why the Next Wave of Startups Will Be Community-Led?

How to create a balanced roadmap of product features?

Product strategy is more about people than your product

👋 PS: I’m Ritika founder, product marketer and advisor for early-stage startups, find more here or connect with her here. If you’re a first-time founder looking for curated resources, download here. If you enjoyed this post, read the past issues here. You can also promote your product in this newsletter.

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@10x by Ritika

Clear written down vision is better than an…