Stop Building Products Nobody Wants: The Ultimate Validation Guide

Learn how to validate your offer with 100% certainty and zero risk

Creator Money Playbooks: Helping creators master their money. No fluff. No jargon. Just simple systems to earn more, stress less, and build freedom through their work.

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I’ve been guilty of wasting months building products nobody wants.

To avoid this cautionary tale, keep reading…

Most creators and solopreneurs make this mistake. Pouring months (and thousands of dollars) into an idea before knowing if anyone will pay for it.

The result?

• A product nobody buys

• A business that never gets off the ground

• Burnout and frustration

Why? Because their ego is louder than the market.

Here's why so many founders struggle to validate their ideas properly:

• They mistake social media engagement and email signups for real market demand

• They're afraid of criticism and rejection, so they avoid putting their idea to the true test

• They're too invested in their original vision to pivot based on market feedback

• They confuse friendly support and encouragement with genuine customer interest

Don’t confuse noise with demand:

• Likes on social media? Noise.

• "I'd totally buy this!" from friends? Noise.

• A waitlist full of free signups? Still noise.

True validation is (money)—people paying for what you’re offering.

Today, I'm going to show you a proven, step-by-step framework for validating your business idea using other people's money—the same approach used by companies like Tesla to test market demand before making major investments.

Let’s get it.

You don’t determine a great idea, the market does.

Let the people tell you what they want (and listen).

Self-serving will keep you broke. Serving the market gives you a chance.

The last thing you want to do is create something nobody wants.

Every idea isn’t worth entertaining, but how do we distinguish the good ideas from the bad ones? The lean build.

Content creators have a massive advantage here.

Every piece of content is a test. It’s like fishing—cast an idea, see what bites. The more traction it gets, the more you invest.

I got this concept from Nicolas Cole, it’s called lean writing, but it can be applied to your business.

Here’s how it works:

Step 1: Write a social media post

Step 2: If that resonates, expand it into a long-form post

Step 3: If that gains traction, turn it into a lead magnet

Step 4: If that converts well, develop it into a mini-course

Step 5: If that succeeds, build out the full course

There are many ways you can spin this:

You can take the workshop route or coaching route—same destination different path.

The main idea here is each step is a validation checkpoint, requiring more investment only after proving demand.

This is not uncommon. In fact, “The Psychology of Money” by Morgan Housel — now a global bestseller started as a simple blog post.

While validation checkpoints are great indicators that you’re on to something, the idea or business still isn’t validated.

Once people tell you what they want, have them validate it with their money.

The best way to do this is to create a paid waitlist.

Waitlists are great in theory—people sign up, express interest, and wait for the drop.

Here’s what I learned after building several waitlists with hundreds of signups:

• You don’t know if they’re serious

• You don’t know if they’re just curious

• You don’t know if they’re just supporting you

None of those pay the bills.

The Solution: Charge to join the waitlist.

That’s what Elon Musk did for the Model 3 and the Cyber Truck.

Both concepts were new to the market. Before he created thousands of vehicles, he created a paid waitlist to measure interest.

The market showed interest, and that made investors (very) interested.

Elon took a deposit of $250 to ensure it was (real).

Today the waitlist has over 2 million people on it - stretching beyond 4 years.

We never consider how much stuff we pay for in advance already:

• Concert tickets – Pay now, attend later.

• Flights – Book in advance, travel later.

• Courses – Enroll today, learn over time.

• Subscriptions – Pay upfront, use monthly.

• Event venues – Reserve now, host later.

Use the same model for your business.

The faster you can presell your idea, the stronger the signal.

Ok, now here’s where the magic happens…