Customer research: The ‘selfish’ advantage

In a world where startups often fall in love with their own ideas, Hogan offers a refreshing—and somewhat provocative—perspective: “It’s very selfish to invest in customer research.”

This isn’t about being inconsiderate. Quite the opposite. Hogan means that listening to your users is one of the best ways to protect your time, money, and energy. Good customer discovery prevents you from building in a vacuum.

He explained, “You're going to look good if you do it because your products are going to be more successful, your customers are going to be happier, and you’re going to end up with a bigger bonus.”

Behavioral signals: Listening with more than ears

While traditional interviews are a staple of customer research, the IDEA Center relies heavily on behavioral signals—those subtle (and not-so-subtle) indicators of real interest.

• Will someone give you their email address?
• Will they spend time on a prototype?
• Will they actually pay for a product?

“The best one is usually money,” said Hogan. “Can we get somebody to pay for it? That’s the strongest signal we can get that we’re on the right track.”

By collecting these signals early—whether through pilot programs, usability testing, or concept validation—the team can tell if a product is gaining traction or stalling.

Treating startups like science experiments

At the IDEA Center, startups are treated like scientific hypotheses.

This framing resonates with faculty, who are often researchers themselves. “We just kind of frame it as applying the scientific method to business hypotheses,” said Hogan. That means:

• Asking questions about customers and the problem space
• Designing research and interview protocols
• Running experiments
• Analyzing results
• Drawing evidence-based conclusions

It’s not about gut feeling—it’s about data-driven decisions, every step of the way.

“We’re applying the scientific method to business hypotheses.”

Training founders to fish

As the startups transition into the enterprise acceleration phase, the IDEA Center doesn’t just hand over answers—it teaches founders how to ask the right questions.

Hogan has developed a training platform to help entrepreneurs master everything from customer interviews to building a value analysis case. Whether they’re students in the startup associate program or experienced founders, the goal is self-sufficiency.

“I don’t watch them,” he explained. “I just come back and look at the results and have an intelligent conversation with them.”

This coaching model ensures that founders are equipped to continue validating and iterating long after they leave campus.

Metrics that matter

So how does the IDEA Center measure success?

One key metric is the number of “high potential startups” launched each year—companies with a viable idea, early customer interest, a strong board, and at least $100,000 in initial funding. Hogan’s team is responsible for delivering seven of these ventures annually.

Other key performance indicators (KPIs) include:

• Number of de-risking milestones achieved (e.g., customer interviews, concept tests)
• Number of mentors and advisors recruited
• Funding milestones reached by launched startups

These metrics ensure that customer insights are tied directly to business outcomes—not just feel-good feedback.

From dorm room to Y Combinator

Some of the IDEA Center’s alumni have already made waves. Hogan shared the story of a startup that began as a small project and recently raised the largest Series A in Indiana history—$25 million. Another was just accepted into Y Combinator, the prestigious startup accelerator.

“There’s a neoadjuvant chemotherapy diagnostic tool we worked with for a while,” said Hogan. “Now it’s in Y Combinator, and I still remember playing Mario Kart with the founder during one of our early meetings.”

These stories are more than just feel-good moments—they’re proof that when you prioritize customers early, great things happen.

“Customer feedback isn’t just a phase—it’s the foundation of every successful startup.”

When feedback is ignored

Of course, not every story has a happy ending. Hogan also recalled a cautionary tale: a company that burned through $10 million in four years with little to show for it—all because they didn’t validate their idea early.

“They had no product, very few customers, and they came back asking for help in essentially creating a new company from the ashes,” he said.

These failures underscore the core message: doing customer research early isn’t optional—it’s survival.

Bringing human insight to innovation

The IDEA Center’s methodology dovetails perfectly with the mission of Insights Unlocked—to explore how human insight drives better business outcomes. It’s a case study in customer-first innovation, where usability, empathy, and validation are part of the development process from day one.

“Understanding the ‘why’ behind the ‘what’ is where real innovation begins.”

When asked what excites him most about the future, Hogan didn’t cite a funding milestone or a technical breakthrough. He talked about jetpacks and flying cars—childhood dreams that are inching closer to reality.

But perhaps his most powerful insight came not from the future, but the present.

“Customer research is selfish,” he said, with a smile. “You're saving yourself time. You're saving yourself money. It’s in your own best interest.”

And in a world where time and money are in short supply, that’s advice every innovator should take to heart.