Before you sequence activity,
answer the right questions.

The FCP Market Readiness Diagnostic™ is for founders preparing to launch a new product or service, businesses entering a new market or segment, and commercial leaders who want to validate whether the conditions for successful growth exist before committing significant resources to execution. It is particularly valuable for first-mover businesses, AI-native products, and any company entering a market where buyer behaviour is not yet established.

Most founders focus on sequencing: should I build the product first, find customers first, or start marketing first. Sequencing matters, but it is secondary to the more fundamental question of whether the commercial conditions for success exist at all. If your buyer is unclear, your positioning is incomprehensible, or your route to market is uneconomic, the sequence in which you execute those activities makes no difference to the outcome. The diagnostic identifies which conditions are present and which need to be established before sequencing decisions are meaningful.

Product readiness refers to whether your product or service functions as intended and delivers the experience you designed. Market readiness refers to whether the commercial conditions exist for that product to find buyers, be understood, and generate sustainable revenue. A product can be technically excellent and commercially unready. The FCP Market Readiness Diagnostic™ assesses the commercial conditions, not the product itself.

Yes, and this is precisely the situation the diagnostic was designed for. First-mover products face a specific set of commercial challenges that businesses entering established markets do not. The competitive landscape dimension specifically assesses what buyers are currently doing instead of using your product, because that existing behaviour is your real competition regardless of whether named alternatives exist.

Yes. Many businesses that have launched successfully in a limited way use the diagnostic to assess readiness for the next stage of growth, whether that is entering a new market, scaling a channel, or raising funding. The diagnostic surfaces the commercial gaps most likely to limit the next phase, regardless of what has already been achieved.

Investors assess market readiness as part of their due diligence, often using frameworks similar to the six dimensions in this diagnostic. A business that scores well across customer clarity, willingness to pay, and route to market is making the same commercial case that a strong investor pitch requires. Completing the diagnostic before a fundraising process helps identify and address the structural gaps that investors are most likely to surface.

Approximately 12 minutes. Results are available immediately after submission.

You receive a scored result across six dimensions with a band classification and prioritised direction. The FCP team reviews completions and reaches out to businesses where a diagnostic conversation would add commercial value.