# Customer Development
```mermaid
flowchart LR
subgraph Search
D[Customer \n Discovery]
V[Customer \n Validation]
end
subgraph Execution
C[Customer \n Creation]
B[Company \n Building]
end
D --> V --> C --> B
V -- Pivot --> D
```
## Customer Discovery
- Translate ideas into business model hypothesis
- Test assumptions about the customers needs -- "get out of the building"
- Test your solutions by cresting a [[mvp|Minimum Viable Product (MVP)]]
- 4 Phases -- [Customer Discovery - How to Build a Startup | Udacity](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRzz9JJ6iiI)
1. State hypothesis, draw [[business-model-canvas|Business Model Canvas]]
2. Test the problem
3. Test the solution
4. Verify or Pivot
## Customer Validation
- Continue to test all hypothesis
- Validate customers' interest of proposed solution through early orders or product usage
- Decision: pivot by changing one or more hypothesis or move to execution
## Customer Creation
- The product is ready to sell
- Ramp-up sales and marketing spending and resources
- Scale-up the business
## Company Building
- Transition from start-up mode
- Migrate from customer development team to functional departments focused on execution.