Validating whether a product or a service will really work is tough. Even if you successfully validate, that doesn't mean your product is guaranteed to succeed. The process of validation is just the start.

But if you've worked through this process in full and completed each of the stages, you'll be in a far better position. You'll be confident in your idea and have a group of prospective customers for when your product is actually ready.

But most importantly, your product will inevitably improve as a result of working through this Playbook. Speaking to users and customers in this much detail makes it almost impossible to not learn something new about your product and spot opportunities to refine it.

The goal throughout the process of lean validation is to delay the expensive and time-consuming work of coding until as late as possible in the process. Even as a team of designers and engineers ourselves, we try to follow this advice strictly. It's the best way to keep yourself focused, minimise costs and maximise your chances of a successful launch.

If you're looking to learn and read more, one of our top recommendations would be Eric Reiss' startup bible, The Lean Startup. As the name suggests, our Lean Validation Playbook is heavily influenced by the 'lean' way of working. You'll recognise many elements of our advice if you read The Lean Startup.

Now that you've validated, you're ready to start thinking about how you can make your product a reality. Move fast, but stay cautious! Keep talking to your users and keep your process lean. We hope that you'll end up with the next big thing.

Good luck! You'll need it.

The Lean Validation Playbook was written by the team at Hanno. We're a small team of designers and engineers that builds and launches digital products.