The greatest advantage of a launching customer is that it can also be a so-called ‘trophy customer'; namely, a big name that musters the interest of other investors to, at least, have a closer look at your business. Such a trophy customer is fundamental in the start-up phase of your company, yet can also be of great value in later phases. A launching customer differs from a launching partner. A launching customer is a party that satisfies a need for its own organization. In contrast, a launching partner satisfies the need of its customers. A launching partner is an intrinsic part of the business model. Conversely, a launching customer is only a user and is not in any other way involved in your company.
The category launching customer entails a number of deliverables that relate to the critical path:
1. Letter of Intent (LOI): your product is not ready, but you have
one or more interested clients. They clients have stated to buy the
product, given that it eventually meets certain standards. Having a
letter of intent from such interested clients is your key to the
investors' business lounge.
2. Worth proposition: present your primary process in the following order:
Awareness
Interest
Desire
Acquisition
Many start-up companies jump-start from awareness to acquisition. However, it is important to first ask yourself the following question: does the desire to acquire your product really exist among your potential clients or customers?