Choose a problem using customer evidence
See this course’s project requirements
A business practice packet: a customer-problem brief, one-page offer, validation record and justified decision, setup checklist, outreach plan, and operating scorecard. Use the supplied fictional café case or clearly identified permitted real evidence. A supported proceed, revise, or stop decision is a complete learning result.
Keep your working files in your own notebook or software. Save a private description, checklist, and work link in My Proof.
What to include
- A problem brief with classified source notes, a customer-problem statement citing at least two notes, one counterexample or evidence gap, and a useful follow-up question. Use the four supplied fictional notes or clearly identified real evidence you have permission to use.
- Draft a one-page offer with customer, result, scope, exclusions, price, timeline, and next step. Identify assumptions separately from supported facts.
- A validation record showing the test, the decision rule chosen beforehand, classified observed results, and a justified decision to proceed, revise, or stop. Include a limitation and one bounded next test. Use the supplied practice case or clearly identified real-world evidence.
- Draft a setup checklist naming requirements to verify, responsible official sources or support, status, and next actions. Keep unresolved items marked pending.
- Build a sales-process plan with a sample prospect list, outreach draft, stages, and dated follow-ups. Use fictional records for practice.
- Create an operating scorecard with costs, capacity, cash timing, and review dates. Label assumptions and explain one decision using sample results.
Review and revise
Use these criteria to check your work and choose what to improve.
- Claims can be traced to source notes. Fictional inputs, reported behavior, opinions, assumptions, and missing evidence are distinguished.
- The problem and offer fit the customer situation supported by the notes and acknowledge counterevidence.
- The original decision rule is applied accurately. A justified negative finding or revise/stop decision meets the criterion.
- The next test changes one defined element, sets a rule in advance, and names resource limits.
- Plans are internally consistent and record unresolved checks honestly. Assessment depends on reasoning and the work produced, not sales or outside approval.
Want more background?
The idea in everyday life
Core practice uses four supplied fictional interview notes. Separate reported behavior, spending, workarounds, and opinions; use counterevidence to narrow your customer-problem statement. If using permitted real evidence instead, identify its source and limits.
A useful problem statement names a customer, a costly situation, and a current workaround. A small set of notes can support a focused next question without proving market demand.
Meet four café managers.
Priya is exploring a scheduling-reset service for managers of independent cafés with one location. Read the four supplied interview notes before describing the problem; do not invent additional interviews or infer market-wide demand.
- N1 · Manager of a one-location café with 8 staff
“Last Sunday two people changed availability. I spent two hours reworking the spreadsheet and sent six texts. I still covered the opening shift myself.”
- N2 · Manager of a one-location café with 11 staff
“I rebuilt the schedule three Sundays last month. I paid a bookkeeper $60 once to sort it out. I need staff to submit changes by Friday.”
- N3 · Manager of a one-location café with 6 staff
“We use the spreadsheet too, but shifts rarely change. Last week's update took ten minutes. I would not replace it right now.”
- N4 · Manager of a one-location café with 9 staff
“A scheduling service sounds great. I cannot remember our last late change, and I have not tried to fix anything.”
Optional fieldwork
Optional fieldwork: Interview people who agree to take part, or run a small offer test with the appropriate permissions, time, and budget. Keep real observations separate from this fictional case. This adds time beyond the lesson estimate. Sales and positive responses are optional milestones; completion depends on your reasoning.
One step at a time.
Use the sample or information you have permission to use. Keep your work as you go. You can pause between steps.
- 1
Read the four supplied fictional café-manager notes. Label the case fictional and preserve the note IDs. Alternatively, use clearly identified real evidence you have permission to use.
- 2
For each note, separate reported past behavior, current workaround, specific cost or time, and opinion. Preserve the note IDs and keep quotes separate from your interpretation.
- 3
Write one customer-and-problem statement supported by at least two notes. Include the costly situation and current workaround, and keep the claim within this small sample.
- 4
Name one counterexample or evidence gap and write one non-leading question about a recent event that would help investigate it. Check your statement against the notes. Optional fieldwork adds time beyond this core practice.
See how it works.
N1 and N2 support a narrower focus on one-location café managers with frequent last-minute availability changes. N3 is counterevidence to an all-cafés claim; N4 is an opinion without a recent event. A useful question is: 'Walk me through the last availability change: what did you do, how long did it take, and what remained unresolved?' These observations justify a focused investigation, not a claim that the offer will sell.
Did you cover these?
- I classified the source notes and clearly identified fictional or permitted real evidence.
- My statement cites at least two source notes and includes a costly situation and current workaround.
- I recorded a counterexample or evidence gap and a non-leading follow-up question.
What to finish
A problem brief with classified source notes, a customer-problem statement citing at least two notes, one counterexample or evidence gap, and a useful follow-up question. Use the four supplied fictional notes or clearly identified real evidence you have permission to use.
Watch for this
Treating a compliment as purchase evidence, ignoring a counterexample, or presenting supplied fictional notes as interviews you conducted.
How can I tell I understand it?
You can explain which notes support your customer and problem, distinguish behavior from opinion, and state what the evidence leaves unresolved.
Quick knowledge check
Answer all 3 questions. Get at least 2 right and the lesson completes automatically.
You’ll get an explanation for each answer. Signed in? Your results save to your account.
Pass the check. We’ll save the progress.
Answer all 3 questions above and get at least 2 right. You can review the explanations and try again.
Go to the knowledge checkOptional course overview video
An Introduction to the SBA
From U.S. Small Business Administration. Watch here or open it on YouTube .
Use the SBA overview to locate customer-research and planning support after identifying the specific evidence gap in your problem statement.Tools, templates, and lesson sources
Tools and templates
Tools open in a new tab so you can keep your place here.
Sources and further reading
Explore the references behind this lesson.
Report a problem with this lesson
Tell us what went wrong. Please leave out personal information and private project contents.