Product-Market Fit Playbook
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The Four Levels of PMF:
Level 1 - Nascent PMF
Goal: Get 3-5 satisfied customers
Focus on satisfaction first, demand second, efficiency last
Typically pre-seed stage, <10 people
Takes 12-18 months typically
Signs you're stuck: Product wouldn't be missed if gone, each customer wants different features, very hard to find next customer
Level 2 - Developing PMF
Goal: Get from 5 to 25 customers
Focus on finding scalable demand channels
500K-5M ARR, seed/Series A stage, up to 20 people
Takes about 1 year ideally
Signs you're stuck: Stuck at 12-18 months, >20% churn, long sales cycles, losing to competitors
Level 3 - Strong PMF
Goal: Get to 100+ customers
Focus on efficiency while maintaining growth
5M-25M ARR, Series B stage, 30-100 people
Takes 1-2 years typically
The "fish jumping in boat" stage where demand starts coming to you
Signs you're stuck: NRR <90%, churn >10%, growth slowing, spending too much to grow
Level 4 - Extreme PMF
Goal: Expand TAM through new products/markets
All three elements working well: satisfaction, demand, efficiency
25M+ ARR, Series C+, 100+ people
Focus on expanding through new products/markets
Takes 4-6 years total to reach this stage
Key Framework Elements:
The 4 P's to change if stuck: Persona, Problem, Promise, Product
Three key dimensions: Satisfaction, Demand, Efficiency
Roughly 60% of companies get stuck at L1/L2
Dollar-driven discovery is crucial for validating real demand
Need to maintain gains in satisfaction and demand while improving efficiency
