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| Criterion | ![]() Innovation Lean Startup | ![]() Business Strategy GAP Analysis | ![]() Product Discovery Smoke Test | ![]() Product Discovery Pretotyping |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | For uncertain business assumptions, the method forces the idea into contact with real market reactions early. It separates wishful picture, assumption, and observable behavior, so that learning becomes faster than planning. This translates uncertainty into measurable insight. | GAP Analysis compares the current state with a target picture and makes the distance manageable. It becomes useful when, ahead of new initiatives, it must become clear which capabilities, processes, or resources are missing. | When demand only needs to be roughly verified, it tests interest with minimal effort. It measures whether people would take a next step at all. | Pretotyping clarifies whether a customer problem and solution idea create enough real demand. It separates problem, assumption, solution, and evidence, and captures the result as a pretotyping sketch, test setup, and conversion data. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Medium | Low | Low |
Timedifferent | Wochen bis Monate je Lernzyklus | 1-3 h | 1-5 Tage | Stunden bis wenige Tage |
Participantsdifferent | 2-8 | 2-8 | Nutzertraffic | 1-4 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Hypothesis list, MVPs, Learning reports, Pivot or persevere decision | Gap Matrix, Action Plan, Risk Notes | Interest Metrics, Conversion Signal, Learning Note | Pretotyping sketch, Test setup, Conversion data, Go or no-go decision |
Tagsno overlap | LeanStartupValidationMVP | StrategyAnalysisPlanning | ValidationExperimentsDemandGrowth | ValidationDemandMVP |



