> How would I validate the target customer without them insisting on seeing a website? Is it reasonable to develop a concept page they can view the gist of things and then reaffirm that they want to learn more, see a demo, try it out, etc?

That's the advice I got when I reached out to someone much more successful in startups than myself. Like you, I got carried away myself and wanted to build something. But it wasn't until I spoke to other people that I understood that it wasn't really something lucrative yet. The point is that we have to do everything we can to minimize our time building someone that only 1 person wants. So low-fidelity prototypes, slides, anything you can to convey your idea would be ideal.

I've also been advised to start charging right away - for me so far, this is hard. And quite possibly it's an instant sign that we're not solving a very painful problem, which is why no one is willing to pre-order yet.

> How do I stall them without rejecting them forever? I could develop a very basic MVP (based on my assumptions/their feedback from the concept page) in approximately 2 weeks - so I'm imagining that it might be appropriate to suggest I contact them when something is ready. After all, I came to them, not them to me - so they can wait, right?

Yes, it might be the case that you reach out when you're ready or you have some news for them. And you'll know you have enough when you keep hearing the same problems from prospects over and over again. There's no magic number. But once you stop learning, then you'll know it's a problem worth solving since many people have said they want it. If you're doing something that's really useful, you won't lose them.

But you're right, we don't know if it will scale! So you've validated that your solution with all the folks you spoke with. And even when you start charging, you'll have to continue speaking with people to see if there are any other features that are missing that will make your startup scale.

Yes, you are doing research at the moment. And there are multiple hypotheses to test for: Is there a problem? Are prepared meal services the solution to the problem? Are people willing to pay for prepared meal services to solve that problem?

> I'm a bit vague on the value statement (my hypotheses on the convenience may be overrated) so how do I go about developing a better value statement, based on interviewing people in the industry? It could be that customers ordering extra takeout is good enough for most places and want the instant gratification of picking up same day. Prepared meal services is a bit different model as people usually order 3-4 days in advance and only pick up once a week (unlike takeout orders). The advantage to the business is they can take a list of orders and prepare the food in batches more efficiently (efficiency/prep is key for any food service business) and that they'd have subscriptions (meal plans) which would bring in residual income from those committed to ordering.

Exactly, the value statement that you come up with initially is an assumption. You'll have to test to see if your customers and your customers' customers value the same thing as what you're trying to deliver.

> Should I search for similar businesses who already HAVE this type of service (whether online or offline ordering) and ask what they gained from it and what their overall experience has been like (ie positive/mixed) and ultimately what they've learned and would recommend to any places looking to add this service.

It's something you'll have to test but that's a good starting point since they are already familiar with the concept. You can ask them how they got into and why did they get into it -> their responses could then be part of your value statement. You'll also have to figure out the value for the people who are ordering prepared meal services as well.