I've validated 47 business ideas for a total cost of £470. That's £10 per idea, including failures. While others spend thousands building products nobody wants, I spend pocket change proving demand before I write a single line of code.
The £10 validation method isn't about being cheap—it's about being smart. Why risk your life savings when you can prove demand for the price of a couple of pints?
The Traditional Validation Trap
Most entrepreneurs validate backwards:
1. Build the product first
2. Spend months perfecting it
3. Launch to crickets
4. Wonder why nobody wants it
The £10 method flips this:
1. Test demand first
2. Build only what people want
3. Launch to waiting customers
4. Scale what's already proven
The £10 Validation Stack
Google Ads: £7 for targeted traffic
Landing Page Tool: £0 (free tier)
Analytics: £0 (Google Analytics)
Survey Tool: £3 (Typeform/Google Forms premium features)
Total: £10 per test
Step 1: The Napkin Hypothesis
Before spending any money, write your hypothesis on a napkin:
Target Market: Who specifically wants this?
Problem Statement: What exact pain are you solving?
Solution Value: Why would they pay for this?
Price Point: How much would they pay?
Example Hypothesis:
"Small agency owners (50-200 employees) struggling with client reporting will pay £50/month for automated dashboard creation because they currently spend 10+ hours weekly on manual reports."
Step 2: The 60-Second Landing Page
Create a simple landing page that:
Headlines: Clear problem + solution
Benefits: 3 key value propositions
Call-to-Action: "Join waiting list" or "Pre-order now"
Price Anchor: Show the intended price point
Free Tools:
- Carrd.co (simple landing pages)
- Google Sites (basic but functional)
- Notion (public pages)
- GitHub Pages (if you code)
Landing Page Template
Headline: "Finally, [Solution] for [Target Market]"
Subheadline: "[Specific benefit] in [timeframe] without [current pain]"
Benefits:
• Save [time/money]
• Eliminate [frustration]
• Achieve [desired outcome]
CTA: "Get Early Access - £[price]/month"
Step 3: The £7 Traffic Test
Create a Google Ads campaign with a £7 daily budget:
Campaign Setup
Campaign Type: Search
Keywords: 5-10 highly specific terms
Match Type: Exact match only
Location: Your target geography
Daily Budget: £7
Keyword Research
Find keywords your target market actually searches:
Problem-focused:
- "client reporting takes too long"
- "automated dashboard software"
- "agency reporting tool"
Solution-focused:
- "[your solution] alternative"
- "best [category] for [use case]"
- "[competitor] pricing"
Ad Copy Formula
Headline 1: Problem + Solution
Headline 2: Specific Benefit
Description: Social proof + CTA
Example:
"Automated Client Reports | Save 10 Hours Per Week | Join 500+ agencies already using [Tool]. Free trial."
Step 4: The Validation Metrics
Track these numbers over 48-72 hours:
Traffic Quality
Click-through Rate: >2% indicates interest
Time on Page: >45 seconds shows engagement
Bounce Rate: <70% means relevant traffic
Demand Signals
Email Signups: >10% conversion rate
Pre-orders: >5% conversion rate
Survey Responses: >15% completion rate
Interest Validation
Pricing Acceptance: No shock at price point
Feature Questions: Specific functionality requests
Timeline Inquiries: "When will this be available?"
Real Validation Examples
Success: Agency Dashboard Tool
Hypothesis: Agencies want automated client reporting
Landing Page: "Stop Spending 10 Hours on Client Reports"
Traffic: 47 clicks, £1.89 spent
Results: 8 email signups, 2 pre-orders
Validation: ✅ 17% conversion, high engagement
Action: Built MVP, launched to waiting list
Failure: Freelancer Time Tracker
Hypothesis: Freelancers want better time tracking
Landing Page: "Track Time Like a Pro"
Traffic: 23 clicks, £2.00 spent
Results: 0 email signups, high bounce rate
Validation: ❌ No interest, wrong market
Action: Abandoned idea, saved months of work
Pivot: B2B Lead Generator
Hypothesis: Small businesses want lead generation
Landing Page: "Get More Leads Automatically"
Traffic: 67 clicks, £1.95 spent
Results: 3 signups, but lots of price objections
Validation: ⚠️ Interest but wrong pricing
Action: Repositioned for larger businesses
Advanced Validation Techniques
The Survey Deep Dive
For visitors who don't convert, ask:
- What would make this more appealing?
- What's your biggest challenge with [problem area]?
- How much do you currently spend solving this?
- What would you change about this offering?
The Competitor Analysis
Test against existing solutions:
Price Comparison: "Half the price of [competitor]"
Feature Advantage: "What [competitor] doesn't do"
Speed Benefit: "10x faster than [current method]"
The Social Proof Test
Create variations with different proof:
Version A: No social proof
Version B: "Join 100+ users"
Version C: "As seen in [publication]"
Version D: Customer testimonial
Common Validation Mistakes
Testing Multiple Ideas at Once
Mistake: Running 5 validation tests simultaneously
Problem: Can't focus on improving any single test
Solution: One idea at a time, 48-72 hour focus
Vague Value Propositions
Mistake: "Revolutionary platform for business growth"
Problem: Nobody understands what you're selling
Solution: Specific problem + specific solution
Wrong Keywords
Mistake: Targeting broad keywords like "business software"
Problem: Traffic isn't relevant to your solution
Solution: Specific, problem-focused search terms
Ignoring Negative Feedback
Mistake: Dismissing price objections or confusion
Problem: Missing market signals
Solution: Negative feedback is valuable data
Scaling Successful Validations
When validation succeeds (>10% conversion):
Week 1: Deeper Research
- Interview signup users
- Understand their specific pain points
- Identify must-have vs. nice-to-have features
- Validate pricing sensitivity
Week 2: MVP Planning
- Define minimum viable features
- Estimate development timeline
- Plan beta testing approach
- Set realistic launch goals
Week 3: Pre-Launch Marketing
- Build email list with valuable content
- Create anticipation with development updates
- Gather additional feedback
- Plan launch sequence
Industry-Specific Validation
SaaS Products
Focus on: Specific workflow problems
Keywords: "[current tool] alternative," "automate [task]"
Landing page: Free trial + clear feature list
Physical Products
Focus on: Unique benefits or design
Keywords: "best [product category] for [use case]"
Landing page: Pre-order with delivery timeline
Services
Focus on: Outcome guarantees
Keywords: "[service] in [location]," "[outcome] consultant"
Landing page: Case studies + consultation booking
Courses/Info Products
Focus on: Specific skill development
Keywords: "how to [achieve outcome]," "learn [skill]"
Landing page: Free sample + course outline
"The cheapest way to build a successful business is to validate demand before you build supply."
Your £10 Validation Action Plan
Day 1: Write hypothesis and create landing page
Day 2: Set up Google Ads campaign with £7 budget
Day 3-4: Monitor traffic and gather data
Day 5: Analyse results and decide next steps
The £10 validation method has saved me from building 32 products nobody wanted and helped me focus on the 15 that became profitable. It's not about the money—it's about the mindset.
Test small, fail fast, scale smart. Your wallet will thank you.