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Master Steve, Customer Discovery (CDM-C)

Intro​

I'm Steve, your guide to uncover problems so painful users will pay you to solve. We'll find your High-Expectation Customer (HXC): the most valuable user whose success depends on your product, plus their ideal employer profile

Process Overview​

  • 00-PRE: Product Opportunity Assessment
  • 00: Onboarding & Initial Setup
  • 01A: Discover New Idea
  • 01B: Validate Existing Idea
  • 02: MSP Analysis
  • 03: Online Source Validation
  • 04: Niche Trend Analysis
  • 05: Job Map Analysis
  • 06: Pain Point Analysis
  • 07: Gain & Reward Analysis
  • 08: Demographic & Psychographic Analysis
  • 09: Persona & HXC Definition
  • 10: Empathy Mapping
  • 11: Ideal Customer Profile
  • 12: Strategic Stress Test
  • 13: Executive Report
  • 14: Completion

Step 00-PRE: Product Opportunity Assessment​

Intro​

This initial assessment provides a quick, data-driven sanity check on your idea's potential.

Product Concept​

We combine lean startup speed with deep customer empathy for a quick yet insightful first pass.

Actions​

I rapidly analyze your idea's potential customer, problem severity, market size, and competitive landscape.

Deliverables​

The "Flash Report" gives you an immediate, honest assessment of your idea's viability.

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Step 00: Onboarding & Initial Setup​

Intro​

This pre-flight check gathers your foundational goals and ideas to establish a solid starting point.

Product Concept​

We gather your initial hypotheses about the business to begin a systematic testing process.

Actions​

I collect your initial hypothesis, OKRs, and target region to establish our shared context.

Deliverables​

This step documents the foundational variables that will guide all subsequent work.

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Step 01A: Discover Expertise & Audience Niche for Solution​

Intro​

We identify industries ripe for disruption and match them with your unique skills and interests.

Product Concept​

We find "quick-win" opportunities in underserved industries that can be rapidly tested.

Actions​

I research industries and cross-reference them with your profile to find the perfect opportunity match.

Deliverables​

This step delivers a well-defined initial hypothesis tailored to your strengths and market needs.

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Step 01A: Discover Expertise & Audience Niche for Solution​

Intro​

We identify industries ripe for disruption and match them with your unique skills and interests.

Product Concept​

We find "quick-win" opportunities in underserved industries that can be rapidly tested.

Actions​

I research industries and cross-reference them with your profile to find the perfect opportunity match.

Deliverables​

This step delivers a well-defined initial hypothesis tailored to your strengths and market needs.

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Step 01B: Discover Audience Niche for Solution Idea​

Intro​

We find the perfect audience niche that desperately needs the solution you've conceptualized.

Product Concept​

We use your solution as a lens to uncover the latent, unstated needs of different audiences.

Actions​

I define your solution's "Job-to-be-Done" and research potential niches to find the best fit.

Deliverables​

This step delivers a detailed analysis of your top 1-3 target audience niches.

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Step 02: MSP Analysis and Comprehensive Audience Side Niche Gathering​

Intro​

We determine if your idea is a Multi-Sided Platform (MSP) and map its entire ecosystem.

Product Concept​

We apply platform economics to identify network effects and solve the "chicken-and-egg" problem.

Actions​

I analyze your idea for MSP traits and conduct a deep-dive analysis on each audience side.

Deliverables​

This step delivers a complete ecosystem map and a strategy for prioritizing platform sides.

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Step 03: Identify and Quality Validate Online Sources​

Intro​

We find the high-quality online sources where your target customers have authentic conversations.

Product Concept​

We use opinion mining to extract meaningful insights from the internet's massive, real-time focus group.

Actions​

I find and validate the best online sources based on activity, relevance, and content quality.

Deliverables​

This step delivers a curated list of high-confidence online sources to monitor your customers.

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Intro​

We analyze search trends to uncover emerging needs and the specific language your customers use.

Product Concept​

We use search data as a proxy for customer intent to get ahead of market needs.

Actions​

I research and analyze the top 10 search trends for your target niches.

Deliverables​

This step delivers a detailed analysis of search trends, revealing key market opportunities.

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Step 05: Audience Job Map Steps Analysis​

Intro​

We map the customer's journey, breaking down their "Job-to-be-Done" into smaller steps.

Product Concept​

We use the "Job Map" framework to identify where customers struggle and innovation is needed most.

Actions​

I create a detailed, step-by-step map of your customer's process to get their job done.

Deliverables​

This step delivers a comprehensive Job Map, blueprinting where to create value in their process.

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Step 06: Pain Point and Challenge Analysis​

Intro​

We identify and quantify the high-impact pain points your customers face on their journey.

Product Concept​

We use sentiment analysis to score pain points by intensity, frequency, and severity.

Actions​

I find and score at least six distinct pain points for each step of the customer's Job Map.

Deliverables​

This step delivers a prioritized, data-driven roadmap of the most valuable problems to solve.

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Step 07: Gain and Reward Analysis​

Intro​

We analyze the positive outcomes and "wow" moments your customers are seeking.

Product Concept​

We use sentiment analysis to identify and score the key drivers of customer delight.

Actions​

I find and score at least six key gains or rewards for each step of the customer's Job Map.

Deliverables​

This step delivers a blueprint for creating a delightful product experience.

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Step 08: Audience Demographics and Psychographics Analysis​

Intro​

We create a rich, detailed picture of your target audience's identity and motivations.

Product Concept​

We use market segmentation to create detailed profiles for tailoring your product and messaging.

Actions​

I research and analyze your audience's demographics and psychographics to understand what makes them tick.

Deliverables​

This step delivers a deep, empathetic understanding of the human beings you're serving.

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Step 09: Define Audience Groups and Personas​

Intro​

We organize audience data into groups and create personas, identifying your High-Expectation Customer (HXC).

Product Concept​

We design for a specific, ideal persona (the HXC) who will push the product to be its best.

Actions​

I organize your audience into groups, develop detailed personas, and identify the HXC.

Deliverables​

This step delivers a human face for your data and a clear target for your design efforts.

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Step 10: Create Empathy Maps for Each Persona​

Intro​

We develop an empathy map for each persona to gain a deep, visceral understanding of their world.

Product Concept​

We use empathy mapping to build a holistic, shared picture of the customer's experience.

Actions​

I create a detailed empathy map for each persona, synthesizing all data into what they think, feel, see, and do.

Deliverables​

This step delivers a rich document that captures the inner world of your customers.

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Step 11: Define Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)​

Intro​

For B2B, we define the Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)—the perfect company to sell to.

Product Concept​

We use Account-Based Marketing principles to focus sales efforts on the most promising companies.

Actions​

I research and generate 3-5 distinct ICP options and guide you to the best selection.

Deliverables​

This step delivers a validated ICP, forming the foundation of your B2B go-to-market strategy.

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Step 12: Comprehensive Strategic Stress Test & Pivot Analysis​

Intro​

We conduct a rigorous, data-driven stress test of our entire discovery process to validate our strategy.

Product Concept​

We systematically evaluate our strategy against the four key risks of product development.

Actions​

I analyze all data against the four key risks and present strategic options: proceed, pivot, or retreat.

Deliverables​

This step delivers a comprehensive report with a clear, data-driven assessment of your strategy.

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Step 13: CDM Executive Summary GO/NO-GO​

Intro​

We distill all our research into a concise, 3-page executive report with a clear go/no-go recommendation.

Product Concept​

We present a holistic, data-backed narrative that tells a compelling story about the market opportunity.

Actions​

I synthesize all key insights into a high-impact report designed for an executive audience.

Deliverables​

This step delivers a persuasive executive report to secure buy-in and resources.

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Step 14: Customer Discovery Master Completion​

Intro​

We formally conclude the discovery process and guide you to the next logical step.

Product Concept​

We close the loop on the "problem space" and prepare for the transition to the "solution space."

Actions​

I congratulate you, guide you to the next Master, and collect your valuable feedback.

Deliverables​

This step delivers a clear path forward, with all data and insights ready for the next phase.

Conclusion​

Conclusion​

Integration Assessment​

Each step systematically transformed a raw hypothesis into a validated, data-backed strategy.

Appendix​

Appendix​

Input/Output Variables​

This document lists all the input and output variables for the CDM master prompt.

Input Variables​

Global Variables​

These variables are available throughout the master's execution.

  • mm_master_path: Constant describing the master_prompt's path this workflow will follow
  • workflow_state_machine: Tracks master workflow execution state including mode flags and step completion status
  • mm_debug: Enables mm_log function to record inference-time logging
  • mm_user_data: User's name, language and memorized preferences
  • mm_log: Persists all mm_log function calls' data
  • mm_mem: Learning journal for tracking insights and improvements across sessions
  • mm_hypotheses: Tracks hypotheses for validation throughout the discovery process
  • mm_jtbd_json: Jobs-to-be-Done (JTBD) statements for each audience, and related Job Map Steps (JMS) with key attributes
  • mm_jtbd: Markdown formatted JTBD card for display purposes
  • cdm_niche_selection_report: Comprehensive niche selection comparative analysis report with scoring, validation, and strategic recommendations
  • mm_audiences_json: Comprehensive array of highest-potential niche audiences with complete niche analysis
Step 00-PRE: Product Opportunity Assessment​
  • mm_initial_hypothesis: User's initial idea or audience hypothesis for product/feature/service
  • mm_user_data: User's name, language and memorized preferences
Step 00: Onboarding & Initial Setup​
  • mm_user_data: User's name, language and memorized preferences
  • mm_initial_hypothesis: User's initial idea or audience hypothesis for product/feature/service
  • mm_mem: Global learning journal.
  • cdm_pre_step_completed: Flag to indicate the WOW factor step has been executed.

Output Variables​

These variables are created or updated by the CDM master during its execution.

  • cdm_flash_report: A visually engaging and brutally honest "Flash Report" assessing the potential of your idea.
  • cdm_pre_step_completed: Flag to indicate the WOW factor step has been executed.
  • mm_user_data: User's name, language and memorized preferences
  • mm_initial_hypothesis: User's initial idea or audience hypothesis for product/feature/service
  • mm_initiative: Initiative-related attributes
  • mm_okrs: User's OKRs: objective, key results (including NSM and restrictions), timeframe for achievement, baseline and % change.
  • mm_target_region: Target geographical region or market for the product/feature/service
  • mm_tech_opportunities: Top 20 technology fields with disruption potential and market analysis
  • mm_selected_fields: User-selected technology fields for exploration
  • mm_audiences_msp: Summary table derived from mm_audiences_json showing key metrics for all audience sides including MSP platform economics
  • mm_online_social_ugc_sources: Validated high-confidence online sources for audience analysis
  • cdm_niche_trends: Analysis of search trends by audience side
  • mm_jtbd_jms: Structured markdown report of audience Job Map Steps with key attributes causes, with full supporting evidence and analysis for each audience, niche, and job map step
  • cdm_pains_and_challenges: Detailed analysis of pain points with associated scores. detailed attributes, scoring, and business impact analysis for each audience, niche, and job.
  • cdm_gains_and_rewards: Comprehensive analysis of gains and rewards with business impact assessment data for processing
  • cdm_audience_insights: Comprehensive analysis of audience demographics and psychographics
  • mm_personas: A view from mm_personas_json with detailed persona profiles for each audience group
  • mm_personas_hxc: A view from mm_personas_json with a mapping of audience niches to their HXC personas
  • cdm_empathy_maps: Comprehensive empathy maps for each persona
  • cdm_icp_options: Multiple ICP options for each selected business persona
  • cdm_strategic_stress_test: Strategic Stress Test & Pivot Analysis
  • cdm_strategic_decision: Strategic GO-NO-GO Decision
  • cdm_executive_report: CDM Executive Report
  • mm_next_master_acronym: Next Master Acronym selected by user for continuation