01
Recognizing PMF
YC's public discussion emphasizes that product-market fit is commonly overstated. Genuine PMF is associated with strong demand, retention, usage, and economic evidence rather than merely having some customers.
The key question is whether demand is pulling the product forward strongly enough that maintaining the system and serving customers becomes the dominant operational problem.
02
Signals
- Retention.
- Organic referrals.
- Rapid usage growth.
- Customers repeatedly requesting the product.
- Customers paying meaningful amounts.
- Expansion within accounts.
- Strong inbound demand.
- Increasing operational pressure from real usage.
03
Before Scaling
Premature hiring, infrastructure spending, organizational complexity, and growth spending can obscure whether the core product actually works.