Most founding teams obsess over getting their first customers. But in category creation, not all early adopters are created equal. In a recent episode of Category Visionaries, Eric Olden, CEO of Strata Identity, revealed his “Dirty Dozen” framework – a methodical approach to selecting and working with your first twelve customers to validate a new market category.
Why Twelve?
“We call this in practice the dirty dozen. And it’s an easy number to remember. Twelve is a good sample size,” Eric explains. But the framework’s power isn’t in the number – it’s in what happens next. Out of these twelve early adopters, you’re actually looking to identify 6-8 customers who share the same core problem and are satisfied with the same solution.
The term “dirty” isn’t arbitrary. As Eric notes, “You’re dealing with customers that are really unclear about what they want because they’ve never seen this before.” This inherent messiness is what makes the framework so valuable.
The Customer Selection Process
Before writing a single line of code, Eric advocates for extensive customer development. “Wait, don’t start writing software. Get your hypothesis as vetted and validated as you can and document it,” he emphasizes. The key is identifying if your solution addresses a top priority: “If the problem that you’re talking about isn’t the top one, two or three priority for the people you’re talking about, then you may build a product, but it’s not important enough for people to do much with it.”
The Value of Unsustainable Engagement
A counterintuitive aspect of the Dirty Dozen framework is embracing unsustainable practices. “You’re going to do some things that don’t scale but are going to get your first early adopter successful,” Eric explains. This high-touch approach serves two purposes:
- It provides deep insights into customer needs
- It helps identify which customers represent your true market
Finding Your Core Six to Eight
The most crucial part of the framework is what happens after engaging with all twelve customers. “They have the same problem and they’re all happy with the same solution. So let’s really focus on that subset and be able to walk away from customers who want you to do something that will spread your resources too thin,” Eric advises.
This willingness to walk away from potential customers – even early in your company’s journey – is what separates successful category creators from those who end up with unfocused products.
Validation Through Investment
Eric shares two key indicators of genuine interest:
- Financial investment: “The gold standard is whether they’ll pay for something or not.”
- Time investment: “The next one after that is they’ll spend time with you.”
He suggests a direct approach: “I know you’ve given me some time. Would you give me more time and pilot this? And if you were able to be successful on a pilot, would you purchase that?”
The Founder’s Role
One common mistake is delegating early customer development. “This is the founder’s full time job. This isn’t something you hire somebody in to come and do this,” Eric emphasizes. At Strata, both the CEO and CTO were deeply involved in these early conversations, creating a shared understanding that continues to guide their strategy.
Beyond the Dozen
The framework’s impact extends beyond initial validation. At Strata, Eric applies these learnings to their 2024 strategy: “We’ve really oriented our go to market message around a very concrete, tangible set of value propositions, solving very tactical things.” This focus came directly from understanding which subset of their early customers represented their true market.
The Dirty Dozen framework isn’t just about getting early customers – it’s about building the foundation for a new market category. By focusing on a small, carefully selected group of early adopters and being willing to walk away from customers who don’t fit, founders can validate their category hypothesis and build products that solve real, priority problems for their target market.