Methodology

The Only Quantitative Viability Score Built for SaaS Founders

Stop guessing. Know if your idea will work with a data-driven 0-100 score that analyzes market demand, competition, monetization potential, and founder fit in 60 seconds.

72/100
VALIDATE MORE

Your idea shows promise. Address weak factors before building.

4,000+ ideas validated
60-second analysis
Used by YC founders
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Why Founders Waste Months on Bad Ideas

You can spend 3-6 months manually validating your startup idea, talking to customers, researching competitors, and building spreadsheets. Or you can rely on your gut feeling and hope for the best.

Both approaches have the same problem: no clear answer.

Manual Validation

Takes 3-6 months with no guarantee of a clear decision. You still end up guessing.

Competitor Tools

Give you feature lists and pricing data, but no success probability or recommendation.

Gut Feelings

Lead to confirmation bias. You see what you want to see, not what the data says.

You need a number. A score. A decision.

5 Factors. 10 Points Each. One Clear Answer.

The MiskMap Viability Score analyzes your startup idea across five proven success factors. Each factor is scored 0-10 based on AI analysis of market data, competitive intelligence, and business fundamentals.

1. Market Demand (0-10)

What it measures: How many people actively want this solution right now.

Why it matters: The biggest reason startups fail is building something nobody wants. High demand means customers are already searching for solutions.

Example: Market Demand 8/10

50K monthly searches for "project management for remote teams", growing 15%/month. Clear pain point with active buyer intent.

2. Competitive Position (0-10)

What it measures: Can you compete and win against existing solutions.

Why it matters: Markets dominated by giants (Google, Microsoft, Salesforce) are hard to penetrate. You need clear differentiation or a defensible niche.

Example: Competitive Position 6/10

Asana and Monday.com dominate, but gaps exist in AI-powered automation for non-technical teams. Niche differentiation possible.

3. Monetization Potential (0-10)

What it measures: Will people actually pay for this solution.

Why it matters: Traffic without revenue is a hobby, not a business. Your idea needs a clear path to profitability.

Example: Monetization 7/10

B2B productivity tools have proven $10-30/user/month pricing. Competitors show willingness to pay. Freemium model viable.

4. Customer Access (0-10)

What it measures: Can you actually reach your target customers without burning cash.

Why it matters: If customer acquisition costs more than lifetime value, your business dies. You need low-cost channels that work.

Example: Customer Access 7/10

Remote work communities on Reddit, LinkedIn groups, and Product Hunt provide low-cost access to early adopters. SEO potential strong.

5. Founder Fit (0-10)

What it measures: Do you have the skills, time, and resources to build this.

Why it matters: The best idea in the wrong hands fails. Your background, technical skills, and available time must align with what the idea requires.

Example: Founder Fit 6/10

You're a developer with project management experience, but lack design skills. Will need to hire designer or use no-code UI tools.

How We Calculate Your Final Score

We average the five factor scores to give you an overall viability rating. But we don't stop there. The AI also identifies which factors are holding you back and provides specific recommendations.

80-100: BUILD

Strong viability across all factors. Start building your MVP immediately.

60-79: VALIDATE MORE

Promising but needs refinement. Address weak factors before investing heavily.

40-59: PIVOT

Core issues detected. Consider significant changes or a different approach.

0-39: DON'T BUILD

Fundamental problems. Save months of effort and explore a different idea.

Viability Scoring vs. Guesswork vs. Basic Reports

Most validation methods give you qualitative insights or competitor feature lists. MiskMap gives you a quantitative score with a clear recommendation.

MethodTimeOutputActionability
Manual (HBS method)3-6 monthsQualitative insightsUnclear
Competitor tools (VMS)4 hoursFeature comparison listsLow
MiskMap Score60 seconds0-100 score + recommendationHigh

Other tools tell you what exists. MiskMap tells you if you can win.

See How Founders Use the Viability Score

High scores correlate with faster product-market fit. Low scores save founders from wasting months on doomed ideas.

78/100

Project Management for Remote Teams

Decision: Built immediately

Reached $12K MRR in 6 months by focusing on the AI automation gap identified in the report.

45/100

AI Resume Builder

Decision: Pivoted to niche (developer resumes)

New score: 81/100. Launched niche version and found PMF in 3 months.

35/100

Social Media Scheduler

Decision: Didn't build

Saved 4 months of development time. Market saturated with Buffer, Hootsuite, and free alternatives.

Built on Validated Startup Frameworks

The Viability Score isn't guesswork. It's based on proven startup methodologies combined with AI analysis of real market data.

  • Lean Startup Methodology: Validates problem-solution fit before building
  • Jobs-to-be-Done Framework: Analyzes why customers hire products, not just features
  • Blue Ocean Strategy: Identifies uncontested market spaces and differentiation opportunities
  • AI-Powered Analysis: Claude AI trained on 10,000+ startup case studies for pattern recognition

You get startup wisdom from YC, Harvard Business School, and thousands of real-world case studies in 60 seconds.

What to Do With Your Viability Score

Your score is the starting point, not the end. Here's exactly what to do based on your rating.

80-100: Start Building Your MVP Immediately

Your idea is strong across all factors. Focus on Stages 3-4 in MiskMap to get your complete technical roadmap, then start coding. The market is ready for you.

60-79: Validate the Weak Factors First

Check which factor scored lowest. If Market Demand is weak, test with a landing page first. If Monetization is the issue, interview 10 potential customers about pricing before building.

40-59: Don't Build Yet. Pivot Based on the Report.

Your validation report shows exactly what's wrong. Low Competitive Position? Find a niche. Weak Customer Access? Rethink your target audience. Fix the core issue, then re-validate.

0-39: Save Months of Effort. Explore New Ideas.

This idea has fundamental problems that are expensive or impossible to fix. Use MiskMap's idea generator to explore alternatives. Better to know now than after 6 months of development.

Viability Score Questions

Get Your Viability Score in 60 Seconds

Stop guessing. Know if your startup idea will work with a quantitative 0-100 score.

0-100 Viability Score across 5 success factors
Factor-by-factor breakdown showing strengths and weaknesses
Competitor analysis with pricing and market positioning
Clear BUILD/VALIDATE/PIVOT/DON'T BUILD recommendation
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No credit card required. Free tier includes full validation.

The MiskMap Viability Score: Predict SaaS Success in 60 Seconds