Hard-won lessons in customer validation, pitch evolution, and when to stop listening and start building.
When you’ve built enough things the wrong way, you start to build differently.
That’s what happened with LocationIQ. This wasn’t a story of painful failure. It was one of applying what we’d learned—early validation, listening over pitching, and knowing when to move.
We weren’t perfect. But we got the balance right: talk first, build second, and keep your bets small until you know what really matters.
🧭 The Problem We Thought We Were Solving
We started with a general hypothesis: municipalities had powerful GIS data but struggled to use it—especially for non-technical staff. The initial vision was a conversational AI interface layered on top of their existing tools.
It made sense. It felt aligned with where AI was going. But we’d been here before: confident in the concept, unclear on the pain. So this time, we approached it differently.
🗣️ How We Opened the Right Conversations
Instead of launching straight into a pitch, we framed our meetings as exploration. We were clear that we had a general idea—but there were many possible directions. We asked for help focusing on what mattered most.
We didn’t sell. We listened.
And most importantly, we avoided the early demo trap. Even when we knew we had something that could match their pain, we held back.
Instead, we asked:
“How are you handling this today?”
“What’s the most frustrating part of that process?”
“How often does that happen? What does it cost you?”
🧪 A Better Kind of Validation
Those conversations taught us more than any MVP could. We weren’t just confirming pain—we were quantifying it.
Our goal was to get past “yes, that’s an issue” and into “this happens twice a week and costs us $5,000.”
Even better: we started hearing about manual workarounds.
People were stitching together spreadsheets, emails, and phone calls just to coordinate infrastructure projects across departments and utility companies.
That was the moment we knew: we weren’t solving a visibility problem.
We were solving a coordination problem.
And it wasn’t theoretical. They were already trying to solve it themselves—just painfully.
🔁 The Pitch Deck Became a Feedback Loop
We didn’t overbuild a product.
Instead, we cycled fast: three major versions, seven minor iterations. Each one sharpened the messaging. Each one filtered for real interest.
Our decks weren’t about showing what we had built. They were about testing what we were learning.
By the time we got to the third version, it didn’t feel like a pitch anymore.
It felt like saying out loud what we had already heard—just more clearly.
💡 When It Was Time to Build, We Built Light
Once we started hearing patterns, we didn’t keep talking.
We built—but just enough.
We created a focused prototype using real mobile scans from Camden, NJ and Phoenixville, PA. We used AI to extract insights. We framed it in their language, with their pain points. It wasn’t everything—but it was something real.
And it worked.
We got nods. But this time, they meant something. We saw actual traction—interest in pilots, follow-up conversations, and early champions.
Because we weren’t just pitching—we were reflecting back what we had learned.
✅ What We Did Differently (and Would Do Again)
- Started with open conversations, not product claims
- Asked quantifiable questions, not “Would you use this?”
- Listened for effort, not just emotion
- Used pitch decks as tools for learning, not persuasion
- Held back the demo until we could show they had been heard
- Built a lightweight prototype only after repeated signals
- Validated the need with speed, focus, and minimal waste
🎯 Closing: Smart Building Starts With Listening
This time, we didn’t fall in love with our first idea.
We didn’t build too early.
We didn’t mistake politeness for traction.
Instead, we did just enough to learn, and used that learning to build something people actually needed.
That’s the Builder Mindset.
It’s not just about speed—it’s about knowing when to go fast.
And more importantly, what direction to go in.
So if someone tells you “That sounds great,” pause.
Ask a better question.
Then listen until the real work reveals itself.
