Three massive mistakes that smart entrepreneurs make

Game Thinking
Three
Massive
Mistakes
even smart innovators make
… & how to avoid them

Amy Jo Kim, Ph.D. 
Innovation Coach

Amy Jo Kim, Ph.D. 
Innovation Coach
Author

I help startups, game studios & global brands  
build deep engagement from the ground up

I’ve worked on a diverse set of
innovative worldwide hits

Multi-player rhythm action game

Some teams I worked with created breakthrough hits 
Others didn’t cross the chasm

I want you to avoid these
3 common & costly mistakes
that cause even smart innovators to fail

Mistake #1
Listening to the
wrong people

Why did this innovative
gaming platform fail?

… while this  
innovative
mobile health
service
turned
into  
a hit?

Game Thinking Quotes
“Build something just a
few people want - even
if most people don’t get
it right away” 
Paul Buchheit
Partner, Y-Combinator

Innovation diffusion theory
EVERETT ROGERS, 1961

Crossing the Chasm
GEOFFREY MOORE, 1991
CHASM

Solution:
Solve a real
problem for a
narrow niche

CHASMSTART NOT
To cross the chasm…

your super-fans are
SPECIFIC to your project

Alex Rigopalous 
CEO, Harmonix

When the game was further along, we DID test our ideas with these casual
gamers. But in the early days, it was our super-fans who helped us bring the
game to life. In a very real sense, those hard-core music gamers were our
co-creators -- our collaborators — able to see what our crude mockups and
simple artwork could become, and — crucially — give us actionable
feedback on how to make it better.
rhythm game nerds
comfortable with Alpha

Will Wright 
Creator, The Sims

simulation enthusiasts
who love to make things

Mary Lou Song 
Product Manager, eBay

enthusiastic early sellers
making a living off the site

Jeff Tsang & Blair Ethington
CEO & Exec. Producer, Crowdstar

Our mission was to create an mobile
game for fashionistas that would feature
hot-off-the-runway designer clothes, and
bring in a much broader female audience
than any previous game they’d published.
non-gaming fashionistas
who love fashion apps

Ofer Leidner 
President, Happify

stay-at-home parents who’ve
recently left the workforce

Early conversations
are really important.
We thought we knew
what the answers
would be - and we
were WRONG.
Jesse Schell
CEO, Schell Games

How can YOU listen to the right people?

“Who are my ﬁrst 50 customers?”

Mistake #2
Polishing your
prototype too
early

Beware the
siren song
of
seductive
mockups

Solution:
Discover what’s
wrong as quickly
as possible

“You can use an eraser
on the drafting table or
a sledgehammer on the
construction site.”
Frank Lloyd Wright
Architect

Stage
Kill
Gate
Concept Bank
Kill
Gate
Kill
Gate
Stage
Stage
Stage
Stage Gate Theory

Slack started as a communications tool for people
building a multiplayer cooperative game

How can YOU discover
what’s wrong as fast as
possible?

Which assumptions should I be testing?

What low-ﬁdelity tests can help me learn?

Mistake #3
Building the
wrong MVP

In a loop, you’re
learning a skill and
updating your mental
model. That leads to
player delight.
Daniel Cook
co-founder, Spry Fox Games

Operant
Conditioning
AKA  
Skinner Box?

Operant
Conditioning
AKA  
Skinner Box?
X

Skill-building =
making customers
more awesome

Mastery Path
skill-building
feedback
repeatable,
pleasurable
activity
progress &
investment
cues &
triggers
cues &
triggers
internal
situational
external
engaged
MASTERY
HABIT-BUILDING
ONBOARDING
DISCOVERY
skill-building
feedback
repeatable,
pleasurable
activity
progress &
investment
cues &
triggers
cues &
triggers
Learning
Loop

Discovery is for Visitors
Social discovery
via friends and
colleagues

Onboarding is for Newbies
Learn the
ropes with a
friendly bot

Habit-building is for Regulars
Customized
group chat with
emojis, bots,
and integrations

Mastery is for Enthusiasts
Launch a channel,
program a bot,
integrate your app

Build something people love
Create an experience
that gets better as
your customers
become more skillful
MASTERY
HABIT-BUILDING
ONBOARDING
DISCOVERY

Solution:
Build & test your
Learning Loop
ﬁrst
Start Here

Solve a real problem for a small group of people

Slack started with a simple, stripped-down  
Learning Loop
skill-building
feedback
repeatable,
pleasurable
activity
progress &
investment
cues &
triggers
cues &
triggers
internal
situational
external
engaged
MASTERY
HABIT-BUILDING
ONBOARDING
DISCOVERY
skill-building
feedback
repeatable,
pleasurable
activity
progress &
investment
cues &
triggers
cues &
triggers
Learning
Loop

all updates &
messages read
read & respond
to updates
customize your
communications
& channel
FOMO —
check updates
FOMO —
check updates
TRIGGER
ACTIVITY

all updates &
messages read
read & respond
to updates
customize your
communications
& channel
FOMO —
check updates
FOMO —
check updates
SIMPLE
FEEDBACK

all updates &
messages read
read & respond
to updates
customize your
communications
& channel
FOMO —
check updates
FOMO —
check updates
PROGRESS
TRIGGER

Learning Loop =
making customers
more skillful

Game Thinking
5 steps to product/market ﬁt
Game Thinking
Gives you a roadmap for finding product/market fit

Step 1: Hypothesize
articulate your strategy & prioritize your assumptions

Game Thinking
Step 2: Empathize
ﬁnd hot-core customers & learn their habits & needs

Game Thinking
Step 3: Design
sketch out your customer’s journey to mastery

Game Thinking
Step 4: Playtest
Validate your assumptions by testing with Superfans

Game Thinking
Step 5: Validate
distill your results & create your product roadmap

Game Thinking
So how exactly do you
10X your customer discovery  
with Superfans?

don’t rely on
friends & family

Finding superfans
for a mental
health app
CASE STUDY

people diagnosed with depression?

stay-at-home ex-professional parents?

TITLE: 
Get passionate customers to tell you what they want
SECTIONS:
1: Recap & Who I Am
2: Find your super-fans with 5 key discovery questions
4: Foreshadow Video #3 (+ CTA)
5-min Speed Interviews

sort them into the right buckets

start testing your assumptions

coping with a major life change?

what do you do when you’re feeling down?

what tools & activities make you feel better?

how often do you actively seek out  
an activity that lifts your mood?

Which mood-lifting techniques did  
you try last week? What worked?

Given the
apps &
techniques
you’ve tried,
what could
be improved?

If you could
wave a magic
wand, what
would you
change?

Happify built a thriving super-fan community…

and leveraged that
to become the
market leader in
digital happiness

How can YOU find & mobilize your 
passionate, high-need early customers?

Game Thinking
Put the Superfan Funnel to work

Game Thinking
Screen your audience

Game Thinking
Interviewer
Note-taker
Interview promising respondents

Game Thinking
Ask 2-3 revealing followup questions

Game Thinking
Identify existing habits to piggyback on

Game Thinking
Summarize those patterns into Job Stories

Game Thinking
Job Stories bridge research & design

Game Thinking
Apply those habits & patterns to
Design Your Customer Journey

When I get home after dropping off the kids
I want a quick dose of pleasure & inspiration
So I can feel motivated and energetic

Instead of
listening to the
wrong people…

Solve a real
problem for a
narrow niche

Instead of
polishing your
prototype too
early…

Discover what’s
wrong as quickly
as possible

Instead of
building the
wrong MVP…

Build & test your
Learning Loop
ﬁrst

Game Thinking
This is how you set yourself up to deliver a 
compelling customer experience

TAKE THE QUIZ
gamethinking.io/quiz
FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER
@amyjokim
GET IN TOUCH
amyjokim@gmail.com
THANK YOU

Three massive mistakes that smart entrepreneurs make

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