[flyosity]

Figuring out what to do after you build a product is only hard if you don't plan to sell the product. For example, if you build a consumer-oriented service that you plan to offer for free, then, yes, developing the business model is hard. And by looking at lots of "pageview-successful" startups who are still trying to make their first dime of revenue, it may take years to graft a successful business model to a free service. Hell, I think Twitter is still working on this.

But if you build a product that you want because it fits a need that you have, then it'll probably fit other people's needs as well. And then you attach a price to it, and then people pay for it, just like any other types of goods that people purchase. Examples of products with simple business models? SaaS apps with monthly subscriptions. Build a good product, charge a fee to use it. Yes, you still have to figure out how to market it, but since the big hurdle is getting people to hand over money for the thing you built, you're well on your way.

(And, just one more clarification, talking to potential customers and integrating their feedback while you build the product and making sure that at each step you're building something people want is a good way to make your marketing/distribution problems a lot simpler.)

[jmathai]

I think that's a bit of an oversimplification. Scratching your own itch might not solve a need for a market big enough for a viable business. You end up "pivoting" till you figure that out.

If there's a way to find that out early then you save yourself valuable time. Time which could determine if you're able to stay alive long enough to succeed or not.

Not at all advocating spending a year on market research but don't go straight from idea to your basement to start coding. Not if you're trying to build a business out if it.