Type: Extended Prompt Platforms: All (Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor, Cline, Gemini) Phase: Phase 0 — Pre-development validation Attribution: Inspired by Matt Cromwell's product thinking framework
Use this prompt to validate product-market fit before building a WordPress plugin or product. This research-first approach helps you discover whether your idea solves a real problem that people will pay for.
- Before starting a new plugin project
- When considering whether to build a feature or standalone product
- When pivoting an existing product
- Before investing significant development time
This prompt uses a falsification-based approach — instead of seeking confirmation that your idea is good, it actively tries to find reasons why it might fail. This protects you from confirmation bias and helps identify risks early.
I'm researching product-market fit for a WordPress plugin idea. Help me validate this concept using a falsification-based approach — I want to find reasons this might fail before I invest in building it.
# Product Concept
**Working Name:** [Your plugin name]
**One-Line Description:** [What it does in one sentence]
**Target User:** [Who specifically would use this]
**Problem Statement:** [What problem does it solve]
**Proposed Solution:** [How your plugin solves it]
# Research Questions
Help me investigate each of these areas. For each question, I want you to:
1. Research the current landscape
2. Identify specific evidence (not opinions)
3. Flag red flags or concerns
4. Suggest what would need to be true for this to succeed
## 1. Problem Validation
- Is this a real problem people actively seek solutions for?
- How do people currently solve this problem?
- What search terms do people use? (estimate search volume if possible)
- Are people complaining about this in forums, support tickets, or social media?
## 2. Existing Solutions
- What plugins already solve this problem?
- How many active installs do competitors have?
- What are their ratings and common complaints?
- What's their pricing model?
- What gap exists that they don't fill?
## 3. Market Size & Willingness to Pay
- How large is the potential market?
- Is this a "nice to have" or a "must have"?
- What price point would this support?
- Are there comparable plugins at similar price points?
- What's the typical customer lifetime value in this space?
## 4. Distribution & Discovery
- How would people find this plugin?
- Is wordpress.org/plugins a viable channel?
- What content/SEO opportunities exist?
- Are there partnership or integration opportunities?
- What would customer acquisition cost look like?
## 5. Technical Feasibility & Differentiation
- Can this be built with WordPress capabilities?
- What technical moat (if any) exists?
- How easily could competitors copy this?
- What ongoing maintenance burden exists?
- Are there API dependencies or third-party risks?
## 6. Economic Reality Check
- Given realistic market size, price point, and conversion rates — is this viable?
- What would monthly revenue look like at 1%, 5%, 10% market penetration?
- How does this compare to the development and support investment?
- Is this a venture-scale opportunity, a lifestyle business, or a side project?
## 7. Ecosystem Pressure
- Is WordPress core moving in a direction that helps or hurts this?
- Are hosting companies or page builders adding similar features?
- Is AI potentially commoditizing this solution?
- What regulatory or platform risks exist?
# Output Format
Structure your response as:
## Executive Summary
[2-3 sentences: Should I pursue this? What's the verdict?]
## Go/No-Go Signals
### Green Flags (Reasons to Proceed)
- [Evidence-based reasons this could work]
### Red Flags (Reasons to Stop)
- [Evidence-based concerns]
### Yellow Flags (Needs More Research)
- [Areas of uncertainty]
## Detailed Analysis
[Your analysis of each research question]
## Recommended Next Steps
[If proceeding: what to validate next]
[If not: what alternative directions to consider]
## Key Assumptions to Test
[List the critical assumptions that must be true for success]
Add this section to the prompt:
# Additional Context: Feature or Product?
This might be better as:
- A feature in an existing plugin: [which one?]
- A standalone free plugin
- A standalone premium plugin
- A SaaS product
- Not worth building
Help me determine which path makes sense.
Add this section:
# Existing Product Context
**Current Product:** [Name and description]
**Current MRR:** [If applicable]
**Current User Base:** [Size and characteristics]
**Relationship to Existing Product:** [Extension, replacement, complement]
Add this section:
# Competitor Deep-Dive
Analyze these specific competitors in detail:
1. [Competitor 1 name/URL]
2. [Competitor 2 name/URL]
3. [Competitor 3 name/URL]
For each, identify:
- Their positioning and messaging
- Pricing tiers and what's included
- Recent changelog/development activity
- Strengths I'd need to match
- Weaknesses I could exploit
I'm researching product-market fit for a WordPress plugin idea...
**Working Name:** WP Email Validator
**One-Line Description:** Validates email addresses in forms before submission to reduce bounces
**Target User:** WordPress site owners using contact forms
**Problem Statement:** Fake or mistyped emails waste marketing resources and hurt sender reputation
**Proposed Solution:** Real-time email validation integrated with popular form plugins
I'm researching product-market fit for a WordPress plugin idea...
**Working Name:** Simple Redirects
**One-Line Description:** Lightweight 301 redirect manager without the bloat of SEO plugins
**Target User:** Developers and site owners who don't need full SEO suites
**Problem Statement:** Users install heavy SEO plugins just for redirect functionality
**Proposed Solution:** Minimal redirect-only plugin with CSV import/export
After completing the initial research, use these follow-up prompts:
Based on our research, help me define the minimum viable product:
1. What's the smallest version that delivers core value?
2. What features can wait for v2?
3. What's the launch timeline look like?
4. What metrics will prove/disprove our assumptions?
The original concept has too many red flags. Based on what we learned, suggest:
1. Adjacent problems that might be better opportunities
2. Different target markets for the same solution
3. Partnership or integration opportunities instead of building
- PROJECT-KICKSTART-PROMPT.md — Use after validating PMF
- PLUGIN-MARKETING-PROMPTS.md — Marketing strategy and positioning
- ../../workflows/new-plugin/ — Complete plugin development workflow
This research framework is inspired by Matt Cromwell's approach to product thinking in the WordPress ecosystem. The falsification-based methodology helps builders avoid confirmation bias and identify real market opportunities.