Part 1 of the "Everything you wanted to know about X" series where I give you my top go-to resources for basic growth concepts.
Understanding growth can be challenging, not because of a lack of resources, but because of too much information on the subject. Which is why I have compiled a list of resources that I keep going back to when I want to review key concepts in growth or want to look at everyday growth challenges from a different perspective.
Let's be honest, we tend to forget information that we don't use much over time.
Today's hot topic is Product Market Fit. For most of us, Product Market Fit is a myth. Most startups will fail before reaching it. It is elusive, does not come with a bang and is really hard to reach. You don't necessarily remain in PMF after you have reached it since the market is always evolving.
Start with the basics:
[Article] 12 things about Product Market Fit by Tren Griffin
The product/market fit (PMF) concept was developed and named by Andy Rachleff (who is currently the CEO and co-founder of Wealthfront, and is a co-founder of Benchmark Capital). The core of Rachleff's idea for PMF was based on his analysis of the investing style of the pioneering venture capitalist and Sequoia founder Don Valentine.
Check out the resources at the end!
Reading time: 20 minutes
[Article] The only thing that matters by Marc Andreesen of Andreesen Horowitz
Product/market fit means being in a good market with a product that can satisfy that market.
Reading time: 15 minutes
[Article] The Never Ending Road to Product Market Fit by Brian Balfour
There are key differences between the traction phase and the growth phase of a company. Understanding what stage you are at, helps you focus on the right goals, metrics, channels, and team structure. But how do you know when you are ready to transition from one phase to the other?
Reading time: 15 minutes
[Article] The revenge of a fat guy by Ben Horowitz of Andreesen Horowitz
First, I agree that the best way to build a big company would be to find product market fit and then raise a bunch of money to build a big business. But sometimes, things aren't so clear. Let me try to describe some of the ways things can get messy as a series of myths about product market fit.
Reading time: 17 minutes
Dive deeper
[Video] How to find Product Market Fit by Peter Reinhardt, CEO of Segment
The reason is that most founders can actually pretty easily build something that looks like it's from the future or is from the future to some extent like it's easy to solve the technology problem there but it's actually really difficult. It's not really what you need to do. You don't need to build something that is your vision of the future, you actually need to solve a specific problem that customers have today, here, now.
Watching time: 48 minutes
[Video] Do you have Product Market Fit? It's all about retention
Startup growth isn't just about driving users through your funnel. You need retention if you want your startup to survive. Casey Winters discusses what true product market fit looks like, and how to effectively grow your business once you've found it.
Watching time: 55 minutes
[Video] The Hunt for Product Market Fit by Sachin Rekhi
The hunt for finding product/market fit in an early-stage startup is an elusive one, often fraught with chaos, and certainly never easy. However learning to leverage a cycle of defining, validating, and iterating on each of your most critical product/market fit hypotheses is a sure-fire way to bring some predictability to the process and provide guidance on whether your team is getting closer or farther from the ultimate goal.
Watching time: 45 minutes
I will keep updating this list of resources based on your feedback. If you have any great resources that you use and are not on this list, let me know!