Product-Market Fit: Why Disappointed Users Are a Good Thing

Product-market fit (PMF) is the degree to which a product or service meets the needs and desires of its target market. It involves identifying a value proposition, building something customers need, having a problem worth solving, winning word-of-mouth growth, and experiencing a pull from the market. To determine PMF, companies can talk to their customers, make it every team's job, open their roadmap to feedback, or test messaging and features with budget. Measuring PMF involves running product-market fit surveys, measuring against growth metrics, and using frameworks like The Lean Product Process or The Superhuman product-market fit engine. Aiming for a high percentage of "very disappointed" users in the PMF survey is crucial to achieving sustainable business growth.