A short, practical guide to when and how founders can prevent costly product mistakes before they happen.
Why This Matters (And Why I Care)
Building a business is a constant balancing act between vision, uncertainty, and speed; something I know well, having co-founded, grown and sold two companies.
Startup teams move fast because they have to. But that speed often hides silent risks: misaligned or unneeded features, flows that quietly confuse people, propositions that don’t land as clearly as they feel internally, and assumptions that slowly become expensive.
None of this is a founder weakness; it’s simply what happens when you’re working so close to a product. My work exists to bring clarity in the moments that matter most.
Here are four founder situations where I’ve been brought in to provide critical, confidence-building direction to founders and their product teams:
1. When you want to know how well your product is solving the problem (and how to improve it)
Founders often understand the problem deeply. But early product versions can miss the mark in ways the team can’t see.
No one’s doing anything wrong; you’re simply too close.
User testing at this stage reveals:
- Where your product connects
- Where it falls short
- What users need that your product doesn’t yet support
- What feels confusing, unintuitive, or unexpected
- What needs to be clearer, faster, or simpler
Optimising a product this early can be the difference between something that feels “nice” and something users feel they genuinely need.
2. When you’re deciding which features belong in your MVP
Every founder wrestles with this. When you’re close to an idea, everything feels essential. But your users don’t need everything.
User testing brings clarity by showing:
- What features users need to start getting value from your product
- Which features are essential for version one
- What can be safely delayed, simplified or dropped
- Where early effort will have the biggest payoff
A well-prioritised early product can be smaller and smarter.
3. When it’s unclear how well your proposition is being communicated (and how that affects conversion)
Founders know the value of their product instinctively. But your users don’t have that advantage. They arrive with no context, and if the message isn’t crystal clear, they pause; and hesitation kills conversion.
User testing at this stage uncovers:
- How quickly users understand your proposition
- Which messages are landing, and which aren’t
- Where uncertainty or confusion is creeping in
- What questions remain unanswered
- What extra proof or reassurance do users need
To drive sign-ups, it’s sometimes only the clarity that needs to change, not the product. Small communication gaps quietly suppress conversion. Fixing them is often the fastest win a startup can get.
4. When you feel too close to your product to see the problems
When you’ve lived inside a product for weeks or months, everything seems obvious. You know what every label means, why every flow exists, and what each feature is supposed to do.
Users don’t. And that’s where blind spots appear.
This isn’t a founder weakness; it’s the reality of proximity.
User testing reveals:
- What’s working well, what isn’t, and why
- Where uncertainty, hesitation or friction shows up
- Where your intention and user interpretation don’t match
- Which elements feel intuitive, and which don’t
- What users focus on (which often isn’t what you expect)
- Where hidden assumptions shape the experience
Seeing your product through a user’s eyes reveals the small moments that create big problems, so you can fix them before they cost you.
A UX researcher and product partner in one
Because I’ve spent my career working across product strategy and hands-on research, inside companies, co-founding, building and selling a successful tech business and, more recently, as a consultant, I’m well placed to help startups generate insights that inform tactical and strategic decisions.
I translate what users do, say and struggle with into practical priorities, clearer direction, and decisions founders can act on immediately.
This means you’re not just getting research; you’re getting a senior partner who can help you move forward with confidence.
I’ve worked with startups, scale-ups, SMEs and FTSE 100s, supporting teams to:
- Clarify early product direction
- Prioritise intelligently
- Reduce wasted development
- Spot gaps before they become expensive
- Build products that users understand and value
Flexible, project-by-project support with no headcount commitment
Startups shouldn’t hire too early, so I work entirely on a project-by-project basis; you can bring me in when needed, without commitment.
Let’s chat
If you’re feeling unsure about your problem, your solution, your MVP, your messaging, your onboarding, or a prototype, a short round of user testing can give you answers incredibly quickly, potentially saving thousands of pounds and weeks of uncertainty.
If you’d like an outside perspective on your product, I’m always happy to take a look.
Email: phil.randall@userfy.co.uk
Call: 07712669935
