From mentilead-growth-os
Validate a Shopify app idea before building it. Analyzes competitive landscape, identifies underserved merchants from competitor reviews, maps demand signals from forums and communities, and produces a go/no-go recommendation with evidence. Use when user says "app idea", "should I build", "validate idea", "next app", "market gap", or "is there demand for".
How this skill is triggered — by the user, by Claude, or both
Slash command
/mentilead-growth-os:idea-validatorThe summary Claude sees in its skill listing — used to decide when to auto-load this skill
Before starting any mode, determine the current state and route to the correct flow.
Before starting any mode, determine the current state and route to the correct flow.
marketing/MEMORY.md and marketing/STATUS.mdmarketing/ does NOT exist: tell the user to run the init skill first and stopmarketing/ideas/ directory exists.md files in marketing/ideas/ to build the ideas dashboardmarketing/apps/ to understand the existing portfolio (for Gap Discovery and Portfolio Fit)If marketing/ideas/ has any idea files, present this summary:
Idea Pipeline:
| Idea | Status | Go/No-Go | Confidence | Last Updated |
|------|--------|----------|------------|--------------|
{for each idea file: extract frontmatter and display}
Active portfolio: {app count} app(s)
If no ideas exist yet, skip the dashboard and move to mode detection.
Based on the user's request, route to the appropriate mode:
If the user's intent is ambiguous, present the three modes and ask which they'd like:
"I can help you validate an app idea three ways:
- Full Exploration — thorough validation of a specific idea (~30 min)
- Gap Discovery — find opportunities based on your existing portfolio
- Quick Pulse — fast 2-minute triage on an idea
Which would you like?"
Full validation workflow for a specific app idea. Problem-first — always start with the merchant problem, not the solution.
Read these files to inform the validation:
references/idea-validation-guide.md — 5-Signal Framework, thresholds, red flagsreferences/merchant-segments.md — Shopify merchant segmentation for ICP hypothesisreferences/funnel-benchmarks.md — Revenue distribution and milestone expectationsStart with the problem, not the solution:
"Before we talk about your app idea, let's focus on the problem. What specific problem do Shopify merchants have that you think isn't being solved well?"
Guide the developer to articulate:
Help them refine into a structured hypothesis:
"[Target merchant type] currently struggles with [specific problem] because [root cause]. They currently solve this by [workaround], which fails because [limitation]."
Write the Problem Hypothesis section to marketing/ideas/{slug}.md.
Guide the developer through competitor research:
"Let's see what already exists. Search the Shopify App Store for apps in this category. For each competitor you find, I need: name, approximate install count, rating, review count, price, and their biggest weakness."
For each competitor (aim for 3-5), gather:
Competitor Review Mining:
This is the highest-signal research activity. Guide the developer:
"Now the most important part: go to each competitor's App Store page and read their 1-3 star reviews. Look for patterns — what do merchants complain about repeatedly? Each complaint is a potential opportunity."
For each competitor, capture 3-5 specific complaints in the review mining table:
Gap Analysis:
After gathering competitor data, synthesize:
Red Flag Check:
Using the red flags from references/idea-validation-guide.md, check:
If any red flag is present, call it out immediately and discuss whether it's a dealbreaker.
Write Competitive Landscape and Gap Analysis sections to the idea file.
Guide the developer through demand research across multiple sources:
"Let's check whether merchants are actively looking for a solution. Search each of these sources and tell me what you find."
Source-by-source guidance:
Shopify Community Forums (community.shopify.com):
Reddit (r/shopify, r/shopifyapps, r/ecommerce):
Facebook Groups (Shopify Entrepreneurs, Shopify App Developers):
Competitor Reviews (already gathered in Phase 2):
For each source, capture in the Demand Signals table:
Calculate Demand Score (1-10):
Using thresholds from references/idea-validation-guide.md:
Write Demand Signals section and score to the idea file.
Using the problem hypothesis and competitive research, develop initial hypotheses.
ICP Hypothesis:
Using segmentation from references/merchant-segments.md, help identify:
JTBD Hypothesis:
Craft a preliminary job statement:
"When [situation/trigger], I want to [motivation/job], so I can [expected outcome]."
Switching Forces Assessment:
Map the four forces based on evidence gathered so far:
Rate each force 1-10 with supporting evidence. The formula for success:
Push + Pull must be > Anxiety + Habit
Write ICP Hypothesis, JTBD Hypothesis, and Switching Forces sections to the idea file.
Feasibility Check:
Assess build viability:
Portfolio Fit (only if developer has existing apps):
Using portfolio criteria from references/idea-validation-guide.md:
For single-app developers or first-time builders, skip Portfolio Fit.
Write Feasibility and Portfolio Fit sections to the idea file.
Based on competitive pricing data and willingness-to-pay signals:
Reference the revenue distribution from references/funnel-benchmarks.md:
"54.53% of Shopify apps earn under $1K/month. To reach $1K MRR at $X/month, you need Y paying merchants."
Write Pricing Hypothesis section to the idea file.
Synthesize all evidence into a recommendation. Read the thresholds from references/idea-validation-guide.md.
Score each of the 5 signals:
| Signal | Rating | Evidence Summary |
|---|---|---|
| Competitor Weakness | Weak/Moderate/Strong | (one-line summary) |
| Community Demand | Weak/Moderate/Strong | (one-line summary) |
| Search Volume | Weak/Moderate/Strong | (one-line summary) |
| Willingness to Pay | Weak/Moderate/Strong | (one-line summary) |
| Feasibility | Weak/Moderate/Strong | (one-line summary) |
Decision logic:
Generate:
Write Go/No-Go section to the idea file. Update frontmatter: status, go_no_go, confidence, last_updated.
Portfolio-aware opportunity discovery. Requires at least one existing app.
marketing/MEMORY.md — current apps, ICP, positioning, channelsmarketing/apps/ — each app's app.md for category, ICP, differentiatorsmarketing/positioning/icp.md — established ICP profile (if exists)references/idea-validation-guide.md — portfolio expansion criteriareferences/merchant-segments.md — segmentation dimensionsIf no apps exist in the portfolio:
"Gap Discovery works best when you have an existing app to build from. Would you like to try Exploration Mode instead, or run the init skill to register your first app?"
Based on the existing portfolio, identify adjacent opportunities:
Same ICP, different problem: What other pains does your target merchant have?
Same category, different segment: Are there underserved merchant segments in your category?
Workflow adjacency: What happens before and after merchants use your app?
Complement gaps: What do your current users ask for that's out of scope?
For each promising adjacent space, guide the developer:
"Let's explore [adjacent space]. Search the Shopify App Store for apps that solve [adjacent problem]. What do you find? Focus on the 1-3 star reviews — what are merchants complaining about?"
Rank and present the top 3-5 opportunities:
| Opportunity | ICP Overlap | Demand Signal | Competition | Portfolio Fit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (name/description) | High/Med/Low | Strong/Med/Weak | Crowded/Moderate/Open | Natural/Possible/Stretch |
For each opportunity, provide a 2-3 sentence summary of why it's interesting and what the key risk is.
When the developer picks an opportunity to explore further:
"Great choice. Let's run this through the full validation. I'll guide you through the same process we use for any idea."
Create a new idea file at marketing/ideas/{slug}.md from templates/idea-validation.md and proceed through Exploration Mode (Step 1) starting at Phase 1.
Fast triage for an idea that doesn't warrant full exploration yet. Target: ~2 minutes.
"Give me your idea in one sentence: what problem does it solve, and for whom?"
If the developer gives a solution instead of a problem, redirect:
"That's the solution — what's the merchant problem it solves? What are they struggling with today?"
Guide a fast competitor scan:
"Quick check: search the Shopify App Store for '[relevant keywords]'. How many apps come up? What's the top app's rating and review count?"
Capture:
Guide a fast demand scan:
"Search Shopify Community forums for '[problem keywords]'. Any recent threads asking about this? How about Reddit r/shopify?"
Capture:
Based on the quick checks, assign a demand score (1-10):
Present one of three outcomes:
If demand score 7+:
"This looks promising. There's real demand and room for a better solution. I recommend a full Exploration Mode validation to assess feasibility, ICP, and go/no-go." Create a stub idea file with status
exploringand the quick findings.
If demand score 4-6:
"Mixed signals. There's some interest but not overwhelming demand. You could either dig deeper with a full validation, or park this idea and revisit in 30-60 days." Offer to create a stub file with status
exploringorparked.
If demand score 1-3:
"Low signal. I don't see strong evidence of merchant demand for this. Consider these alternatives: [suggest 1-2 related problems that might have more demand based on what was found during the quick check]." Offer to create a stub file with status
parkedorrejected, or skip filing entirely.
If an idea file is created, write to marketing/ideas/{slug}.md with the quick findings populated in the relevant sections and empty sections marked as "(not yet assessed — run full Exploration Mode)".
After completing any mode, update persistent state.
Read marketing/STATUS.md and update:
last_updated: today's datego_no_go: go, add or update a Pipeline section:## Pipeline
| Idea | Status | Verdict | Confidence | Next Step |
|------|--------|---------|------------|-----------|
{for each idea with status validated or exploring}
Append to marketing/logs/{today}.md (create if it doesn't exist):
## Idea Validation: {Mode Name}
- **Mode:** {Exploration / Gap Discovery / Quick Pulse}
- **Idea:** {idea_name} ({idea_slug})
- **Verdict:** {go_no_go or "in progress"}
- **Confidence:** {confidence}/10
- **Key finding:** {one-line summary of the most important discovery}
- **Next step:** {what the developer should do next}
If marketing/ideas/ doesn't exist, create it with a .gitkeep file before writing any idea files.
Quick reference for each mode's inputs, reference files, and outputs.
| Mode | Reference Files | Reads | Writes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Step 0: Detect & Route | — | MEMORY.md, STATUS.md, ideas/*.md, apps/ | — |
| Step 1: Exploration | idea-validation-guide.md, merchant-segments.md, funnel-benchmarks.md | MEMORY.md, apps/*/app.md | ideas/{slug}.md, STATUS.md, logs/{today}.md |
| Step 2: Gap Discovery | idea-validation-guide.md, merchant-segments.md | MEMORY.md, apps/*/app.md, positioning/icp.md | ideas/{slug}.md, STATUS.md, logs/{today}.md |
| Step 3: Quick Pulse | idea-validation-guide.md | MEMORY.md | ideas/{slug}.md (optional), STATUS.md, logs/{today}.md |
| All modes | — | STATUS.md | STATUS.md, logs/{today}.md |
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