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The PM Role is Evolving. Enter the Producer.•
The 'Glass Slipper' Trap: Why Early Retention Metrics Mislead•
Your Dashboard Is Lying to You (Stop Hiding Behind Data)•
The 'Imaginary Customer' Problem: Why ICP Often Misleads•
The AI Revenue Illusion: GMV vs ARR•
Pricing is Power: If You Can't Raise It, You Don't Have a Business•
The 'Global Market' Myth: Why Local Wins First•
Why GTM Is Suddenly Everywhere (The Shift from PLG)•
GTM 101: Startup Revenue Architecture•
The 'Glass Slipper' Trap: Why Early Retention Metrics Mislead•
GTM 101: Startup Revenue Architecture•
The 'Imaginary Customer' Problem: Why ICP Often Misleads•
Pricing is Power: If You Can't Raise It, You Don't Have a Business•
The AI Revenue Illusion: GMV vs ARR•
Your Dashboard Is Lying to You (Stop Hiding Behind Data)•
The Hidden Cost of 'Friendly' Feedback•
The PM Role is Evolving. Enter the Producer.•
The 'Global Market' Myth: Why Local Wins First•
Why GTM Is Suddenly Everywhere (The Shift from PLG)•
Your Dashboard Is Lying to You (Stop Hiding Behind Data)•
GTM 101: Startup Revenue Architecture•
The 'Glass Slipper' Trap: Why Early Retention Metrics Mislead•
The 'Imaginary Customer' Problem: Why ICP Often Misleads•
The 'Global Market' Myth: Why Local Wins First•
The AI Revenue Illusion: GMV vs ARR•
The Hidden Cost of 'Friendly' Feedback•
The PM Role is Evolving. Enter the Producer.•
Pricing is Power: If You Can't Raise It, You Don't Have a Business•
Why GTM Is Suddenly Everywhere (The Shift from PLG)•
The 'Glass Slipper' Trap: Why Early Retention Metrics Mislead•
Why GTM Is Suddenly Everywhere (The Shift from PLG)•
The 'Imaginary Customer' Problem: Why ICP Often Misleads•
The AI Revenue Illusion: GMV vs ARR•
The 'Global Market' Myth: Why Local Wins First•
Your Dashboard Is Lying to You (Stop Hiding Behind Data)•
The PM Role is Evolving. Enter the Producer.•
The Hidden Cost of 'Friendly' Feedback•
GTM 101: Startup Revenue Architecture•
Pricing is Power: If You Can't Raise It, You Don't Have a Business•
The PM Role is Evolving. Enter the Producer.•
The 'Global Market' Myth: Why Local Wins First•
GTM 101: Startup Revenue Architecture•
The Hidden Cost of 'Friendly' Feedback•
The 'Glass Slipper' Trap: Why Early Retention Metrics Mislead•
Why GTM Is Suddenly Everywhere (The Shift from PLG)•
The 'Imaginary Customer' Problem: Why ICP Often Misleads•
The AI Revenue Illusion: GMV vs ARR•
Pricing is Power: If You Can't Raise It, You Don't Have a Business•
Your Dashboard Is Lying to You (Stop Hiding Behind Data)•
The Hidden Cost of 'Friendly' Feedback•
The PM Role is Evolving. Enter the Producer.•
The 'Glass Slipper' Trap: Why Early Retention Metrics Mislead•
Your Dashboard Is Lying to You (Stop Hiding Behind Data)•
The 'Imaginary Customer' Problem: Why ICP Often Misleads•
The AI Revenue Illusion: GMV vs ARR•
Pricing is Power: If You Can't Raise It, You Don't Have a Business•
The 'Global Market' Myth: Why Local Wins First•
Why GTM Is Suddenly Everywhere (The Shift from PLG)•
GTM 101: Startup Revenue Architecture•
The 'Glass Slipper' Trap: Why Early Retention Metrics Mislead•
GTM 101: Startup Revenue Architecture•
The 'Imaginary Customer' Problem: Why ICP Often Misleads•
Pricing is Power: If You Can't Raise It, You Don't Have a Business•
The AI Revenue Illusion: GMV vs ARR•
Your Dashboard Is Lying to You (Stop Hiding Behind Data)•
The Hidden Cost of 'Friendly' Feedback•
The PM Role is Evolving. Enter the Producer.•
The 'Global Market' Myth: Why Local Wins First•
Why GTM Is Suddenly Everywhere (The Shift from PLG)•
Your Dashboard Is Lying to You (Stop Hiding Behind Data)•
GTM 101: Startup Revenue Architecture•
The 'Glass Slipper' Trap: Why Early Retention Metrics Mislead•
The 'Imaginary Customer' Problem: Why ICP Often Misleads•
The 'Global Market' Myth: Why Local Wins First•
The AI Revenue Illusion: GMV vs ARR•
The Hidden Cost of 'Friendly' Feedback•
The PM Role is Evolving. Enter the Producer.•
Pricing is Power: If You Can't Raise It, You Don't Have a Business•
Why GTM Is Suddenly Everywhere (The Shift from PLG)•
The 'Glass Slipper' Trap: Why Early Retention Metrics Mislead•
Why GTM Is Suddenly Everywhere (The Shift from PLG)•
The 'Imaginary Customer' Problem: Why ICP Often Misleads•
The AI Revenue Illusion: GMV vs ARR•
The 'Global Market' Myth: Why Local Wins First•
Your Dashboard Is Lying to You (Stop Hiding Behind Data)•
The PM Role is Evolving. Enter the Producer.•
The Hidden Cost of 'Friendly' Feedback•
GTM 101: Startup Revenue Architecture•
Pricing is Power: If You Can't Raise It, You Don't Have a Business•
The PM Role is Evolving. Enter the Producer.•
The 'Global Market' Myth: Why Local Wins First•
GTM 101: Startup Revenue Architecture•
The Hidden Cost of 'Friendly' Feedback•
The 'Glass Slipper' Trap: Why Early Retention Metrics Mislead•
Why GTM Is Suddenly Everywhere (The Shift from PLG)•
The 'Imaginary Customer' Problem: Why ICP Often Misleads•
The AI Revenue Illusion: GMV vs ARR•
Pricing is Power: If You Can't Raise It, You Don't Have a Business•
Your Dashboard Is Lying to You (Stop Hiding Behind Data)•
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The Hidden Cost of 'Friendly' Feedback

The Hidden Cost of 'Friendly' Feedback

4 min read

There is a comforting illusion that derails more early-stage products than technical debt or competitor pressure.

It usually starts with a demo. You show your product to Friends, Family, and Followers (the "3F"). They smile. They nod. They say, "This is amazing," or "I would definitely use this."

You leave the room feeling validated. You feel like you have traction.

However, you may have acquired social capital, not market capital.

The "3F" trap is subtle because it mimics the early signals of Product-Market Fit (PMF) without the friction. These people care about you, not necessarily your product. Their feedback is often an act of support, which, while heartwarming, can be a fragile foundation for a revenue model.

The "My Friend Is the Persona" Fallacy

When I discuss this with founders, a common defense is: "But my friend fits our Ideal Customer Profile perfectly. He is a 30-something developer, he loves SaaS..."

Pause and reflect.

A market persona is not just a demographic checklist. It is a buying situation.

  • Does your friend have the budget authority?
  • Does he have the urgent problem that keeps him up at night?
  • Most importantly: Does he have the social freedom to give you critical, unfiltered feedback?

If the answer to the last question is "no," he might not be a valid data point for market validation. You are not building bespoke software for your circle. You are building for a market that demands value.

Optimizing your product for people who are biased to be nice to you can limit your addressable market significantly.

Decoding User Feedback

Even outside your inner circle, "User Interviews" can be tricky. People are naturally polite and often poor at predicting their own future behavior.

If you are conducting interviews, it is crucial to filter out the noise.

1. The Compliment ("It looks great!")

This can be a misleading signal. In a social setting, "It looks great" is often just a polite punctuation mark. It acknowledges your effort.

  • The Insight: Look beyond the adjective. Observe their behavior. Did they lean in? Did they ask to try it themselves? Indifference is often the most honest emotion.

2. The Hypothetical ("I would use this if...")

"If you add X, I would use it." "If it were cheaper, I would buy it."

This is the "Future Tense Trap." People enjoy imagining a better version of themselves—one who uses productivity apps and saves money.

  • The Insight: Focus on past behavior.
  • Less effective: "Would you pay for a fitness app?" (Most say yes).
  • More effective: "When was the last time you paid for a fitness app?" (Reveals true intent).

3. The Ego Bluff

Users dislike feeling confused. If your UI is unintuitive, they might not say "This is bad design." They might pretend to understand or gloss over the issue.

  • The Insight: Don't ask for explanations; ask for actions. "Show me how you would archive this file." If they hesitate, that is your data. Behavior speaks louder than words.

4. The Feature Request

Users are experts in their problems, but they are not always experts in solution design. When they say, "You should add a chat feature," they might be trying to solve a support latency problem. Building every requested feature can lead to a fragmented product.

Why Casual Opinions Feel Like Expertise

There is a saying that in the startup world, everyone has an opinion. Your uncle has thoughts on your pricing. Your social media followers have thoughts on your logo.

These opinions are free. And in business, free advice should be weighed carefully.

Real expertise and market validation often come with a cost—either in ad spend, sales effort, or product iteration. Relying too heavily on casual observers can steer your product off course.

The Most Honest Feedback Is Friction

So, who should you listen to?

Listen to the friction.

  • The Wallet Vote: The most reliable truth comes from someone who enters their credit card number. They have skin in the game. One paying customer who complains is often worth more than 1,000 friends who praise you for free.
  • The Retention Signal: Look at the logs, not just the exit surveys. Did they use the core feature daily?
  • The "Disappointment" Test: If you turned the servers off tomorrow, who would reach out immediately? That is your core market.

Closing Thought

The goal of user research is not to be encouraged. It is to be corrected.

Seek truth from people who care only if you solve their problem.

If they aren't willing to pay (or switch), their opinion might just be noise.

The Hidden Cost of 'Friendly' Feedback | Oswarld Boutique Firm