Pre-Seed [✓]: What’s next?

So, you’ve just raised pre-seed (normally between $250k to $750k)—congratulations! That’s a huge milestone. But now comes the big question: What’s next?

That cash is going to have to stretch— very likely through about three Product-Market Fit (PMF) cycles.

Firstly, what’s a PMF Cycle?

PMF stands for Product-Market Fit. It’s the moment when your product clicks with your target market, and they can’t get enough of it. But reaching PMF isn’t a one-and-done process; it’s more like a cycle that has four key stages:

1. Acquire Customers: Get people using your product.
2. Prove Adoption & Usage: Show they’re actually using it.
3. Prove Value Exchange: Make sure they’re getting the value they expected.
4. Realise Value Exchange: Finally, turn that value into actual revenue.

That’s one PMF cycle. And you’ll likely need to go through a few of these as you fine-tune your business.

What Really Happens in a PMF Cycle

In theory, it sounds simple: acquire customers, provide value, get paid. In practice? It’s a bit messier. Here’s what’s really going to happen.

Ideal Customer Profiles (ICPs)

You probably have a good idea of who your customers are—your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP). But here’s the thing:

• You’ll acquire customers you think are a perfect fit, and some will be.
• Others, however, won’t be as ideal as you hoped.
• You’ll need to constantly adjust and refine your ICP as you learn more.

Product Reality Check

The product you thought your customers would love? It might not go exactly as planned.

• You’ll discover that the features you were sure they’d adopt…they won’t.
• But, surprise! They’ll love some features you didn’t think twice about.
• You’ll have to iterate and improve based on this feedback.

The Value Dilemma

You may have predicted how valuable your product would be to customers, but reality will show you otherwise.

• Some customers won’t see the value you expected them to.
• Meanwhile, others will rave about a feature you barely spent time on.
• Yep, you guessed it—you’ll need to iterate here too.

Realizing Value (a.k.a. Getting Paid)

The value you believe your product brings doesn’t always align with what customers are willing to pay.

Customers might push back on your pricing, not because they don’t like the product, but because your pricing model is off.

Maybe you’re charging per seat, but they’d prefer a usage-based model.

More iteration needed here as well.

Iteration Takes Time—and Money

This back-and-forth, this refining and iterating, isn’t something that happens overnight. It takes time, and it’s going to burn through some of that cash you raised. So, make sure you’re prepared for the long game.

There are no silver bullets in the startup world. You have to roll up your sleeves, put in the work, and keep refining your approach until it clicks.

You’ve got this.

You’ve already taken the first step by securing your pre-seed round. Now, stay focused, be prepared to iterate (a lot!), and keep your eyes on the long-term vision.

It won’t be easy, but when you nail that PMF, it’ll be worth it.

We are always here to chat if you need to talk through your challenges or validate any ideas.