Progressive Product Testing Funnel
Widen testing only when evidence or audience needs demand it
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Time to result
- ~weeks to results
- Steps
- 6
- Confidence
- 99%
Test products in widening circles, using each stage to decide whether broader evidence is necessary. At Ultra Violette, founders screen first, then the internal team tests candidates that pass. A strong internal result may be sufficient for general experience feedback, while mixed responses or specialized use cases trigger external recruitment. The team searches its customer database, social audience, personal network, models, makeup artists, or paid testing groups for people matching the relevant skin type, tone, concern, climate, or geography. Testers receive structured, product-specific questions rather than a vague request for thoughts. This progression protects time and cost by filtering weak candidates early while preventing a convenient internal sample from standing in for the intended market. The output is an approval rationale grounded in increasingly representative feedback, alongside any unresolved issues requiring another iteration.
Origin
Extracted from The Foundr Podcast
Core principles
- 01Founders are the first gate, not the only audience
- 02Testing should match the product's intended user
- 03Mixed feedback is a signal to widen the sample
- 04Structured questions produce more useful evidence
- 05Geography, climate, and physical variation can change performance
How to run it
- 1
Run the founder screen
Have the founders test the candidate against the product brief and known quality standard. Stop weak candidates before consuming a larger group's time.
Pro tip Record the specific reason a candidate passes or fails.
Watch out Founder approval is a gate, not representative customer proof.
- 2
Use the internal team
Send passing candidates to a broader internal group with varied perspectives. Look for a clear positive result or patterns of disagreement.
Pro tip Treat a strong result with no material notes differently from a mixed result.
Watch out A workplace sample may still omit important user types.
- 3
Define the missing audience
Identify characteristics that could materially change product performance, such as skin type, tone, age, climate, or geography. Specify the tester profile before recruitment.
Pro tip Use existing purchase behavior to find customers with a relevant concern.
Watch out Broad demographic labels can hide the actual performance variable.
- 4
Recruit representative testers
Use customer records, social channels, personal networks, professionals, or paid panels to fill the missing groups. Compensate specialist testers where appropriate.
Pro tip People often value being included in product creation, but participation still needs clear expectations.
Watch out Do not rely on whoever is easiest to reach when the product targets a specific population.
- 5
Structure the questions
Ask precise questions about the features and use conditions under evaluation. Capture responses consistently so patterns can be compared.
Pro tip Use a shared form or sheet with the same questions for every tester.
Watch out A vague request for thoughts produces anecdotes that are difficult to act on.
- 6
Escalate or approve
Approve a clear result within the tested scope, or widen the sample and revise when feedback is mixed. Keep regulated validation separate from consumer preference evidence.
Pro tip State which user groups and conditions the evidence actually covers.
Watch out Consumer feedback cannot establish regulatory compliance or medical efficacy.
In the wild
The team starts with the founders and roughly twenty internal staff. Specialized products can then go to customers selected from purchase history or social channels, while skin-tone or geographic gaps may be filled with models, makeup artists, networks, or paid groups. Testers receive structured questions tied to the product.
→ Feedback becomes broader when the product or early response requires it, rather than by default for every candidate.
The founders and office team would first screen texture and packaging. If performance appears climate-sensitive, the company would recruit outdoor workers in dry and humid regions, ask the same questions about absorption and wear, and compare results before approval.
→ The final decision reflects the intended conditions instead of one office environment.
Common mistakes
Stopping with founder feedback
Founders may understand the brief but still fail to represent the intended users or conditions.
Asking vague questions
Unstructured reactions are harder to compare and less useful for deciding what to change.
Treating preference as validation
User testing informs experience and fit; it does not replace regulated safety or efficacy procedures.
Is it for you?
Best for
Consumer products whose experience varies by user type, physical characteristics, climate, or geography.
Not ideal for
It cannot replace required laboratory, safety, regulatory, or efficacy testing.
From the transcript
“we start with us and if something if it gets past us um it then goes to the team”
“like very specific questions around that specific product”
“we make sure we feel like we've done a pretty comprehensive testing program”
From the episode
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