As a wellness enthusiast and aspiring entrepreneur, you’re passionate about creating something that makes a real impact—whether it’s through coaching, products, or services that help people live healthier lives. But how do you know if what you're building truly resonates with your audience? This is where customer discovery plays a crucial role. To help you get started, we’ll cover:

1. Step-by-step guide to customer discovery

2. Helping Sydney with customer discovery

3. Worksheets, planning tools, and guides designed to kick off and refine your customer discovery

If you find this helpful, I’d be so grateful if you’d share this newsletter with others 🙏. Together, we can help launch and scale 100 wellness businesses, starting with yours!

WELLNESS BUSINESS TIPS

What is Customer Discovery?

🥷Understanding customer needs

Customer discovery is the process of validating your business idea by engaging directly with your target audience. It’s about understanding their needs, frustrations, and desires before you invest time and resources in developing your product or service. By listening closely to your customers’ pain points, you can ensure your idea aligns with their real-world needs.

For example, you might dream of creating a wellness app for busy professionals. But before you spend time and money building it, customer discovery helps uncover if your target market needs this app, how they approach wellness, and what specific features would address their struggles.

The Customer Discovery Guidebook

1️⃣Develop your hypothesis

Before you start interviewing potential customers, take a step back and formulate a hypothesis about your audience. What do you believe their problems are? What gaps do you think your product or service can fill?

For example, let’s say your hypothesis is: “Busy women in corporate jobs struggle to find time for wellness, and they would benefit from a personalized daily wellness routine.”

With this hypothesis in hand, begin your customer discovery process by asking questions that either confirm, challenge, or reshape your initial assumptions.

2️⃣Ask the right questions

Customer discovery is all about asking the right questions—open-ended, thoughtful questions that help you dive deep into your target audience’s mindset.

• “Tell me about your typical day. Where does wellness fit in?”

• “What challenges do you face when trying to prioritize your health?”

• “Have you tried any tools or apps to help you with wellness? What worked, and what didn’t?”

• “If you had a magic wand, what would your ideal wellness routine look like?”

The goal here is not to sell your idea, but to gather data on what their day-to-day pain points are and how they currently approach wellness. You may discover they don’t need a full wellness routine but would prefer a simple 10-minute guided meditation for their commute.

3️⃣Find your ideal customers

You might be thinking, “But how do I find these people to talk to?” Your best resources are often right around you. Here’s where to start:

• Friends & Family: While they may not be your exact target market, people close to you can provide initial insights or connect you with others who are a better fit.

• Social Media Communities: Platforms like LinkedIn, Instagram, or Facebook are great places to find communities where your target audience hangs out. For example, wellness or corporate women’s groups can offer a goldmine of insights.

• Email Outreach: Cold email potential customers or industry experts. Be transparent—explain that you're conducting research to understand their wellness challenges.

• Industry Events: Wellness conferences or networking events can give you a chance to meet potential customers and ask real-time questions.

The more diverse your sample, the more accurate your insights will be.

4️⃣Listen—Don’t pitch

It’s tempting to jump into selling mode when you’re excited about your idea. But during customer discovery, it’s critical to focus on listening. Your goal is to learn what the customer wants, not convince them that they need your solution.

If you hear something that surprises you, dig deeper. Ask follow-up questions. For example, if someone says they don’t have time for wellness apps, ask them to elaborate. Is it a lack of time or motivation? Are the existing solutions too complicated or uninspiring?

The more you listen, the more you’ll uncover critical insights that will shape your product.

5️⃣Validate and iterate

Once you’ve gathered enough data, it’s time to validate your hypothesis. Did your target customers confirm the pain points you initially identified? Or did they highlight a completely different set of needs?

For example, if most of your conversations reveal that corporate women want quick, low-commitment wellness routines rather than an all-encompassing app, it might be time to pivot. Iterate on your idea based on the feedback you received and continue refining it.

Remember, customer discovery is an ongoing process. As you continue to develop your business, keep asking questions, stay curious, and remain open to change. Your business idea may evolve, but that’s how you find true product-market fit.

6️⃣Apply your findings to your business

After conducting interviews and gathering insights, the next step is to apply what you've learned. If you’ve uncovered that your ideal customer values simplicity, ease, and quick results, reflect that in your product’s design and marketing. Maybe your wellness app needs a “quick wins” feature or your wellness coaching should offer 15-minute check-ins.

The more closely your product aligns with your customers’ needs, the easier it will be to build a loyal community and drive success.

7️⃣Keep discovery ongoing

Customer discovery doesn’t end once your product is live. It’s a continuous process. As your business grows, your customers’ needs may shift, and new opportunities may emerge. Keep in touch with your community, gather feedback regularly, and remain adaptable.

The better you understand your customer, the more your business will thrive.

COMMUNITY CORNER

Join Sydney’s Founder Journey: Help Shape the Future of INNR Wellness

Sydney’s journey began with a personal commitment to health and well-being, shaped by her experience as a lifelong athlete. From playing collegiate ice hockey to finding balance through yoga and marathons, Sydney has always prioritized her health. Growing up in a small farm town near Madison, Wisconsin, she valued fresh, local food and expanded her wellness habits by incorporating supplements into her daily routine.

💡INNR was born

Sydney realized how overwhelming the supplement space can be and saw an opportunity to simplify it for others. This led to the creation of INNR Wellness—a marketplace offering a curated collection of clean, ingredient-focused supplements designed to make wellness accessible for everyone, from fitness enthusiasts to wellness newcomers.

🦄Differentiation

1. Curated Product Selection: INNR cuts through the noise by offering only the best, most innovative wellness brands.

2. Cost Effective: For those with a daily supplement routine, INNR’s subscription and savings options allow customers to bundle their purchases and get everything they need in one convenient place.

3. Inclusive: Whether you’re just starting out or are a seasoned wellness enthusiast, INNR is your go-to marketplace for supplements.

🆘How to help

Sydney needs support from wellness enthusiasts, supplement takers, and aspiring business owners. Here’s how you can get involved:

• Take her customer discovery survey

• Make introductions for her in the supplement or wellness product industry

Thank you for contributing to our community's mission to launch 100 wellness businesses. Together, we can lift each other up in our shared commitment to wellness!

CONTACT US

Do you need help with your wellness business? Contact us! Our mission is to launch 100 wellness businesses, starting with yours.

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