{"id":"customer-development","title":"Customer development and business hypotheses","summary":"An exploratory method for checking and revising business assumptions using evidence from customers and markets.","concepts":["Hypotheses: unverified customer, problem and business conditions","Field learning: investigate actual behavior and conditions outside the organization","Revision: change hypotheses in response to disconfirming evidence"],"application":"Investigate problems, purchasing processes and adoption conditions before expanding a service or customer group.","limitations":"Positive interview reactions do not prove purchasing or continued use. Distinguish exploration from operating a mature business.","directions":["Continue discovery: look for evidence against unverified assumptions.","Move to execution: build repeatable operations within the verified scope."],"category":"Business and customers","kind":"method","kind_label":"Method","persona_ids":["management-consultant","customer-success-manager","market-researcher"],"revision":1,"updated_at":"2026-10-07T00:00:00.000Z","sources":[{"title":"Customer Development Manifesto","url":"https://steveblank.com/category/customer-development-manifesto/","publisher":"Steve Blank","edition":"Author’s customer development materials","region":"International reference; verify the application environment","checked_at":"2026-10-07","reuse":"Independent editorial summary and source link; the original text is not republished."}],"review":{"status":"source-checked-editorial","expert_reviewed":false},"editorial_note":"Editorial English translation of the Korean edition. No professional translation or occupational expert review has been completed. Translation does not change the source jurisdiction.","language":"en","translation":{"status":"current","source_language":"ko","source_version":"kb-4caeaa35447d6d07","translated_at":"2026-10-09","professional_reviewed":false},"trust":"reference-data","version":"kb-31c0e986187adc58","links":{"document":"/en/knowledge/customer-development","markdown":"/en/knowledge/customer-development.md","api":"/api/v1/knowledge/customer-development?lang=en"}}