When to Pivot Your MVP (And When to Push Through)

Pivoting too early kills good ideas. Pivoting too late wastes years. Here's how to decide.

Signs You Should Pivot

• •Users sign up but never activate
• •Nobody will pay after 50+ conversations
• •You can't find anyone with the problem
• •Churn is near 100% monthly
• •You dread working on it

Signs You Should Keep Going

• •Some users love it (even if few)
• •People pay and stay
• •Feedback is about features, not concept
• •You're learning with each iteration
• •The market is clearly there

Questions Before Pivoting

• •Have you talked to 20+ potential users?
• •Have you tried 3+ acquisition channels?
• •Have you changed the messaging?
• •Have you offered it free and still no takers?
• •Is the problem real or imagined?

Types of Pivots

• •Customer pivot: same product, different audience
• •Problem pivot: same audience, different problem
• •Solution pivot: same problem, different approach
• •Channel pivot: same product, different distribution
• •Complete pivot: start fresh with learnings

The 30-Day Rule

Give yourself 30 days of focused effort before deciding. Ship daily, talk to users daily, measure weekly. Then evaluate with data, not feelings.