Lab Note · 2026-04-25

We test course ideas in public so you don’t have to gamble with yours.

Most first-time creators spend 3 months building courses that don’t sell. We pre-test course demand using a documented methodology, and publish every experiment — so you can see what works before you commit to building yours.

Run a free Lab Test → Read the latest Lab Report (No. 07) →

No card. Email at the report gate. ~10 minutes.

§ 01 · The Problem

Most course creators build first and validate later. By the time the launch goes quiet, they’ve spent 100–300 hours on something nobody bought. The mistake isn’t the course. It’s the order.

Reported failure rate — first course launches
Source: creator-economy survey, n=1,200

~62%
§ 02 · The Method

A Lab Test runs a structured demand and positioning analysis on a single course concept. You give us three things. We return a Lab Report.

Input
Course concept
Email marketing for B2B SaaS founders with under 1k subs.
Target audience
Solo founders, technical, no marketing hire.
Outcome promised
Send a campaign that produces 3+ booked calls in 14 days.
Output — The Lab Report
1
Verdict
Validate further · Consider not building · Pivot the angle
2
Demand signals
Search volume, course count, public discussion, free-content saturation
3
Positioning
Top competitors named, whitespace identified, specificity score
4
Suggested next moves
A specific pre-sale experiment you can run this week
5
Lab notes
How the verdict was reached. What this test does not cover.
§ 03 · From the Lab

Here’s a recent one, in full. We publish every Lab Report — including the ones whose verdict was “don’t build.”

Lab Report · No. 01 2026-04-18

“Email marketing for B2B SaaS founders, sub-1k subscribers”

Validated.

Metric Result Benchmark
Unique visitors (14-day window) 312 —
Waitlist sign-ups 14 4.5% conversion
Pre-orders @ $97 3 21% of waitlist
Competing free content (search) Low Favourable
Specificity score (1–5) 4.2 Above threshold
Lab notes

Demand signals were positive across all three channels tested. The sub-1k constraint on the audience specification was the primary driver of conversion — broad “email marketing for SaaS” positioning would have competed with Mailchimp and ConvertKit documentation. The pre-order rate of 21% from waitlist is above the 15% threshold we use as a validation signal. Recommended next move: run a paid waitlist with a $47 early-access price and measure drop-off. This test does not cover pricing elasticity above $97, or whether the promised outcome is achievable for the stated audience.

§ 04 · What You Receive

Every Lab Test produces the same five-section report. Same template, every time. Familiar after the first one.

01
Verdict
A single conclusion: validate further, consider not building, or pivot the angle.
evidence-backed
02
Demand signals
Search volume, course count, public discussion, free-content saturation.
data-driven
03
Positioning analysis
Top competitors named, whitespace identified, your specificity score.
named sources
04
Suggested next moves
A specific pre-sale experiment you can run this week, not a list of platitudes.
actionable
05
Lab notes
How the verdict was reached and what this test does not cover.
transparent
§ 05 · Pricing

Three ways in. Most people start with a free Lab Test.

Free
Open Lab Test
$0
  • One Lab Test per idea
  • Automated demand signal scan
  • Verdict + one-line summary
  • Email required to unlock full report
Run a free Lab Test →
Paid
Full Lab Report
$29
  • Full five-section Lab Report
  • Named competitor analysis
  • Specificity score + whitespace map
  • Specific pre-sale experiment to run
Get the Full Report →
Subscription
Unlimited Tests
$19/mo
  • Unlimited Lab Tests
  • All Full Lab Report sections
  • Early access to Lab Pulse
  • Cancel anytime
Start a subscription →

14-day refund · No card to start a Lab Test

§ Built for & not for
Built for
First-launch course creators
500–3,000 followers
USD 0–30k tier
Has felt the burn of doing things half-right
Not for
Hobbyists with no audience
Pre-revenue, under 100 followers
Established creators with USD 100k+ courses
Enterprise L&D
§ 06 · Who runs the Lab

I’m based in Singapore. Before this, I shipped two AI products and watched both fail at validation — once because nobody wanted what it did, once because the people who wanted it wouldn’t pay for it. That’s the source material for the methodology this Lab uses. — The Founder

Stop guessing. Start measuring.

Run a free Lab Test →

Takes ~10 minutes · Email at the report gate · No card