At some point, every project hits the question: is this working? Usually it shows up late at night, after a week where nothing happened, and it brings its friend, "Should I just quit?"
This lesson gives you a way to answer that question with something better than a mood. By the end, you'll know how to define what "working" means before you start, which simple numbers to watch, how long to give something, and how to tell the difference between a thing that needs more time and a thing that needs to change.
You'll still have bad nights. But you'll have a way to make decisions on good mornings instead.
The short version
- Decide what "working" means before you start, so you're not judging by feelings later.
- Watch a few simple numbers, like visitors, signups, and sales, plus what people actually say.
- Give each test a fair window you pick ahead of time, then push, pivot, or stop based on what you see.
Define "working" before you start
Most people never decide what success looks like. So they judge by how they feel that day. Feelings are terrible at math.
Write down what "working" means before you launch, not after you're tired and discouraged.
Make it specific and small
A good early goal is something you can actually measure, and it's usually about whether people care, not about money yet.
Examples:
- "A handful of people outside my friends and family sign up for my email list."
- "At least a few people reply to my post asking for more."
- "One stranger buys my checklist."
- "Two people ask me about my service."
Notice these are small. Early on, the question isn't "Is this a business?" It's "Does anyone besides my mom care?"
Pick your own goal
I'm not going to hand you a number to aim for. The right goal depends on your niche, how much time you're putting in, and where you're sharing your work. Pick something that feels like a real signal to you, write it down, and date it.
The simple numbers to watch
You don't need fancy dashboards. A few numbers tell you most of what you need to know at the start.
Visitors
How many people saw your thing? Page views, video views, or post reach, depending on where it lives. Most platforms and website builders show you this somewhere in their settings or stats.
If very few people are seeing it, the problem may not be your thing at all. It may be that nobody knows it exists yet.
Signups
How many people took a small step, like joining your email list or following you? A signup means someone liked it enough to want more.
Sales or inquiries
How many people paid, or asked about paying? This is the strongest signal. Even one sale from a stranger tells you something real.
What people say
Not every useful signal is a number. Pay attention to comments, replies, and questions. "Do you have one of these for X?" is valuable. So is silence.
Read the numbers like a funnel
A funnel is just the path people take: they see your thing, some of them take a step, and a few of them buy. Looking at where people drop off tells you what to fix.
- Few people see it: Your problem is reach. Share it in more places, or in better places where your people actually gather.
- Plenty see it, almost nobody signs up or clicks: Your problem may be the message. Maybe the title, description, or offer isn't landing.
- People sign up, but nobody buys: Your problem may be the offer itself, the price, or trust. Ask a few of them what's holding them back.
- People buy, but don't come back or recommend it: Your problem may be the product. Ask buyers what was missing.
This keeps you from fixing the wrong thing. No point redesigning your product if the real issue is that only a handful of people saw it.
Give it a fair test window
A test window is how long you'll try something before you judge it. Pick it before you start.
I'm not going to give you a magic number of weeks. There isn't one. It depends on how often you can work on it and how much you're sharing it.
How to choose your window
Ask yourself:
- How many times will I realistically share this during the window?
- Is that enough chances for people to actually see it?
- Can I commit to the full window without changing everything halfway through?
A test where you posted once and then waited isn't a test. A fair test means you did the work: you shared it regularly, you asked for feedback, and you made small fixes along the way.
Push, pivot, or stop
When your test window ends, look at your notes and your numbers. Then pick one of three paths.
Signs to push on
- People are engaging, even if it's a small number.
- The numbers are moving in the right direction, even slowly.
- You're hearing the same positive feedback from different people.
- You still want to work on it.
Pushing on means keep going with the same basic idea, make it better, and share it more.
Signs to pivot
A pivot is a change of direction, not a full stop. You keep what you learned and adjust one big thing.
- People like the topic, but not the format. Maybe they want a template, not a guide.
- A different group of people is responding than the one you aimed at.
- The questions people ask point to a different problem than the one you're solving.
- You're getting views but no action, even after a few fixes to the message.
Pivots are normal. A lot of good projects look pretty different from the first idea.
Signs to stop
- You gave it a fair test and almost nobody responded, even after changes.
- You dread working on it.
- It's costing more time, money, or peace at home than you can afford.
Stopping isn't failing. You ran a test, and you got an answer. That frees your time for the next idea, and you carry everything you learned with you.
Do this next
Results don't care how you feel. That's actually good news. It means you can stop guessing and start reading them.
Veteran. Gen Xer. Thirty-plus years building things on the web. I write these so you can skip some of the expensive mistakes.