--- name: sales-ideavalidator description: "IdeaValidator (ideavalidator.app) platform help — an AI idea validator that also generates a full 17-section Product Requirements Document (PRD). Describe an idea, answer 2-4 AI clarifying questions, and get a scored Worth Doing / Proceed with Caution / Pass verdict across four dimensions (market opportunity, competitive density, execution complexity, monetization fit), then generate or refine the investor-grade 17-section PRD plus an early-access Lab (financial model, competitive deep-dive, hiring plan, execution playbook, UI mockups, go-to-market). Credit-metered with a free monthly allowance; iOS/Android apps. Use when running an idea through IdeaValidator, reading its verdict or four-dimension score, generating or refining the PRD, budgeting credits, or handing the PRD to Claude Code to build. UI-only, no public API. Do NOT use for the tool-agnostic validate-before-building method or comparing idea validators (use /sales-idea-validation), or building the smoke-test landing page (use /sales-funnel)." argument-hint: "[describe what you need help with in IdeaValidator]" license: MIT version: 1.0.0 tags: [sales, idea-validation, platform] --- # IdeaValidator Platform Help IdeaValidator (**ideavalidator.app** — not the same-named ideavalidator.io or myideavalidator.com) is an AI idea validator whose differentiator is that it doesn't stop at a score — it generates a full **17-section Product Requirements Document (PRD)** you can hand to a builder. You describe an idea, answer 2-4 AI clarifying questions, and in under three minutes get a **Worth Doing / Proceed with Caution / Pass** verdict scored across four dimensions, then can generate or refine the PRD and an early-access **Lab** (financial model, hiring plan, execution playbook, UI mockups, GTM). Every action spends **credits**; it's **UI-only, no API**. ## Step 1 — Gather context If `references/learnings.md` exists, read it first for accumulated platform knowledge. Ask only what you can't infer from the user's prompt: 1. **Where are you?** (a) about to run an idea through IdeaValidator, (b) staring at a verdict/score and unsure what to do with it, (c) deciding whether to spend credits on the 17-section PRD, (d) want to use the PRD to actually build (e.g. in Claude Code), (e) asking whether it has an API/export. 2. **What's the idea, in one sentence?** (helps you read the four-dimension score). 3. **What have you got so far** — just a hunch, an AI score, a landing page, a waitlist, or someone offered to pay? Skip-ahead rule: if the user's prompt already contains enough context, skip to Step 2. ## Step 2 — Route or answer directly IdeaValidator is one AI validator. Most of the *thinking* a founder needs is tool-agnostic — route it: | The user's real question | Route to | |---|---| | Should I trust this verdict? How do I actually validate? Comparing validators | `/sales-idea-validation` | | Build the smoke-test / fake-door landing page the demand test runs on | `/sales-funnel` | | Grow a pre-launch waitlist and capture signups | `/sales-audience-growth` | | Reddit-based real-demand signal to cross-check the verdict | `/sales-trendseeker` | When routing, give the exact command: "This is a validation-method question — run: `/sales-idea-validation {the user's original question}`" Answer **directly** only for IdeaValidator-specific mechanics (the four dimensions, the verdict bands, the 17-section PRD, PRD refinement, the Lab, credit costs, "does it have an API"). ## Step 3 — IdeaValidator platform reference **Read `references/platform-guide.md`** for the full reference — the four scoring dimensions, the verdict bands, the 17 PRD sections, the Lab modules, credit costs per action, pricing/plan gates, the (absent) automation surface, and how to get data out. Answer using only the relevant section — don't dump the whole guide. ## Step 4 — Actionable guidance - **The verdict AND the 17-section PRD are AI opinions, not demand.** A "Worth Doing" verdict plus a polished, investor-grade PRD *feels* like proof — but it's a generated document, not a stranger paying. Keep the structured parts (competitive landscape, MVP scope, risks) to sharpen the pitch and hand to a builder; take the actual go/no-go from a real behavior test (smoke test / pre-sale). Route that test to `/sales-funnel` + `/sales-audience-growth`. - **Treat the PRD as a build-handoff artifact, not the decision.** IdeaValidator's real edge in this cluster is that it turns validation into a spec: feed the PRD's **MVP Scope, Functional Requirements, and Architecture** sections into Claude Code / Cursor or to a developer to start building. But its **Market Analysis (TAM/SAM/SOM) and Competitive Landscape sections are AI-generated estimates** — verify every number and named competitor before you rely on them or put them in front of investors. - **Budget credits before you generate.** The free tier is **50 credits/month**; a full 17-section PRD costs **50 credits**, an evaluation costs **10**, and a PRD refinement costs **30** — so free ≈ **one PRD OR ~five evaluations per month**. **Subscription credits reset monthly (they don't roll over) while top-up credits never expire.** Don't burn a month's credits refining a PRD for an idea you haven't validated with real demand yet. - **Feed a specific customer + painkiller problem; thin input → generic PRD.** The 2-4 clarifying questions are what the verdict and PRD are built on — answer them concretely (a named target customer and an urgent, paid-for pain), or the four-dimension score and the 17 sections come back generic. - **Cross-check the verdict with a second source.** Before treating a verdict as final, re-run with a sharper customer/problem and cross-check against a second validator or a real-demand signal (`/sales-trendseeker`) — disagreement between sources is the useful information. - **There's no API — point automation at the demand test, not the report.** IdeaValidator is UI-only (no public API, webhooks, Zapier/Make, or MCP); export is **PDF**. Don't plan an integration around it — the highest-value "export" is copying the PRD text into Claude Code to build. Put any real pipeline on the demand side (landing-page analytics, waitlist capture, pre-sale checkout events). - **Present all pricing/credit costs as best-effort** and tell the user to confirm at ideavalidator.app — this is a small, fast-moving indie tool and the Lab is early access. If you discover a gotcha, workaround, or tip not covered in `references/learnings.md`, append it there. ## Gotchas *Best-effort from research (2026-07) — the AI-validator tool set churns fast; verify the dimensions, credit costs, and the Lab's status at ideavalidator.app.* - **A "Worth Doing" verdict and a finished PRD are not validated demand.** Both are AI output from a short description; a polished PRD raises the *feeling* of certainty without adding real evidence. Always follow with a real-behavior test. - **Name/URL confusion — confirm you're on ideavalidator.app.** Several unrelated products share the name: **ideavalidator.io** is a different "customer development" tool, and myideavalidator.com and a Google Play "Idea Validator" are also distinct. This skill is the **.app** PRD generator. - **Credit math bites on the free plan.** 50 free credits/month = ~one 17-section PRD (50) *or* ~five evaluations (10 each); a refinement is 30. Subscription credits reset monthly and don't roll over; only purchased top-up credits never expire. Failed AI operations are auto-refunded. - **The PRD's market/competitor numbers are AI estimates.** "Monitors 850+ competitors / 3,900+ sources" is marketing; the TAM/SAM/SOM and Competitive Landscape sections are model-generated — verify before quoting to investors. - **The Lab is early access.** The six modules (financial model, competitive deep-dive, team & hiring plan, execution playbook, UI mockup pack, go-to-market plan) may change, be gated, or move behind Pro. - **SaaS/digital-oriented.** The PRD framing (MVP scope, architecture, functional requirements) assumes a software product — it fits weakly for physical goods, services, or brick-and-mortar. - **No API, webhooks, Zapier, or MCP.** UI-only; export is PDF. Don't build automation on it. ## Related skills - `/sales-idea-validation` — the tool-agnostic validate-before-building method and the full idea-validator comparison (start here to decide whether to trust any verdict) - `/sales-funnel` — build the smoke-test / fake-door landing page the real demand test runs on - `/sales-audience-growth` — grow a pre-launch waitlist and capture signups once you're testing demand - `/sales-trendseeker` — Reddit-based real-demand signal to cross-check IdeaValidator's verdict - `/sales-do` — Not sure which skill to use? The router matches any sales objective to the right skill. Install: `npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-do -a claude-code` ## Examples ### Example 1: "It said 'Worth Doing' and gave me a 17-section PRD — am I ready to build?" **User says**: "IdeaValidator scored my idea 'Worth Doing' and generated a full 17-section PRD. Should I start building?" **Skill does**: Reframes the verdict *and* the PRD as AI output, not demand — keeps the useful structured parts (competitive landscape, MVP scope, risks) to sharpen the pitch and hand to a builder, but prescribes the real test: a smoke-test landing page with a pre-committed conversion threshold, then a pre-sale, routing the build to `/sales-funnel` and signups to `/sales-audience-growth`. Notes the PRD is a great *build-handoff* artifact for Claude Code once demand is proven. **Result**: The founder validates real behavior before betting the build on a generated document. ### Example 2 (credits): "How many PRDs can I generate on the free plan?" **User says**: "I'm on the free plan. How many PRDs do I get a month and what does one cost?" **Skill does**: Answers from the credit model — free tier is 50 credits/month and a full 17-section PRD costs 50 credits, so ~one PRD per month (or ~five evaluations at 10 credits each); a refinement costs 30. Flags that subscription credits reset monthly (no rollover) while top-up credits never expire, and advises not spending a month's credits refining a PRD for an unvalidated idea. Marks pricing best-effort — confirm at ideavalidator.app. **Result**: The user plans credit spend instead of burning the month on one idea. ### Example 3 (automation): "Can I auto-export my PRDs into Notion via API?" **User says**: "I want to pull my IdeaValidator PRDs into Notion / my repo automatically — is there an API or webhook?" **Skill does**: States plainly that IdeaValidator is **UI-only — no public API, no webhooks, no Zapier/Make, no MCP**; the only export is a **PDF**. Offers the realistic path: copy the PRD text (the highest-value move is pasting the MVP Scope / Functional Requirements / Architecture into Claude Code to build), or — since the report isn't demand anyway — point any pipeline at the real demand test (landing-page analytics, waitlist, pre-sale events). **Result**: The user stops trying to integrate a UI-only tool and uses the PRD where it actually pays off. ## Troubleshooting ### The verdict/PRD feels too optimistic to trust **Symptom**: A glowing "Worth Doing" and a confident PRD the founder senses is too easy. **Cause**: It's AI output generated from a short description and 2-4 answers; the four dimensions and the 17 sections amplify how you framed the customer and problem. **Solution**: Keep the structured outputs (competitive landscape, MVP scope, risks), discard the verdict, re-run with a sharper customer + painkiller problem, cross-check with a second validator or `/sales-trendseeker`, and earn the real verdict with a smoke test / pre-sale. ### "I ran out of credits after one PRD" **Symptom**: The free plan is exhausted almost immediately. **Cause**: A full PRD costs 50 credits and the free tier grants 50/month — one PRD empties it; refinements cost another 30. **Solution**: Budget before generating — run cheaper 10-credit evaluations to iterate the *idea* first, generate the 50-credit PRD only once the idea is worth it, and note subscription credits reset monthly (no rollover) while purchased top-ups never expire. Confirm current costs at ideavalidator.app. ### The PRD's market size / competitors look wrong **Symptom**: The Market Analysis or Competitive Landscape section cites numbers or rivals that seem off. **Cause**: Those sections are AI-generated estimates, not sourced data — the "850+ competitors / 3,900+ sources" claim is marketing, not per-report citations. **Solution**: Treat the market/competitor sections as a first draft to verify — check TAM/SAM/SOM against real sources and confirm each named competitor exists and competes, before quoting any of it to investors or building on it.