Market Validation Program header

Market Validation Workshop (MVW)

Are you creating an innovative product or service in hopes that your target market will want to buy it? Have you spoken to your target market to uncover their needs and pain points?

MVW is a customer discovery program that invites entrepreneurs to define their product market fit by conducting interviews with potential customers. The crash course consists of a kickoff workshop with team presentations, a 30-minute check-in (virtual option) and a lessons learned finale presentation. The cost is $125 per participant within our Boca based service region. External cohorts are available at a separate cost, please contact mvw@fau.edu for external rates.

We help entrepreneurs and small businesses:

  • Gather qualitative data to identify or validate unmet market or clinical needs
  • Discover your product market fit (i.e. who is your customer and what needs are you fulfilling)
  • Identify gaps and assumptions in your business model canvas
  • De-risk your company/startup by conducting customer discovery interviews

Participants in this program receive multiple resources and opportunities, including:

  • Personalized instruction
  • Networking opportunities
  • Access to a no cost Florida SBDC at FAU consultation
  • Three month access to specialized software for course materials and interview tracking
  • Entrance into FAU's Innovation and Business Development pipeline, programs and resources.

All resources and opportunities are contingent upon a signed agreement.

Note: general deliverables are subject to change, please refer to cohort syllabus.

Final Deliverables

Each team (or entrepreneur) will produce and present the following:

  • Kickoff Presentation
  • 30 minute check-in
  • Finale Presentation: Lessons Learned
  • 25 interviews completed over several weeks

*FAU Tech Runway participants do not have to pay for the Market Validation Workshop and may be eligible to receive credit for this program.

Upcoming MVW


Applications open on a rolling basis.


MVW runs multiple times a year during the Spring, Summer and Fall.

Our next cohort will kick off on January 24 (in person) from 5:30pm-8:00pm and January 25 (virtual) from 5:30pm-8:00pm. Both dates are required.

APPLY HERE


  • THANK YOU to the instructors for your incredible contributions and unwavering dedication throughout the process. Your expertise and guidance made what seemed like a daunting task turn into an exciting adventure. Your patience in explaining complex concepts with such enthusiasm and care made all the difference.

    Omar Sanabria, President of BeSwell24



  • It was truly a pleasure to participate. This methodology is fantastic and we will continue to use it to bring our app to market.

    Audrey Levi, Co-founder, RideGuide
  • The customer discovery training provided by the FAU team has been instrumental in honing our focus on the pivotal driving force behind all innovation and change—the customer. Armed with comprehensive Customer Discovery skills and knowledge, we have experienced a remarkable transformation in our ability to validate our assumptions. As a direct result, we have been able to focus our scarce resources and consistently deliver value to our users.

    Raul Pena, Branch Chief, Digital Capabilities and Technology Maturation, United States Air Force


  • The MVW workshop gave me the opportunity to learn and meet like-minded entrepreneurs. It was great to listen to other business individuals who want to make a difference in the world with their products and services. If you're looking to validate your ideas, I recommend taking on this workshop.

    Stefano Selorio, CEO & Founder, Carevocacy
  • The best Market Validation program out there! We could validate one of our customer segment ideas and now we have all these insights and knowledge that we are applying to other customer segments. Even if you need to pivot from one idea to another, or your first idea can’t be validated, this Market Validation Workshop has all you need to validate the next idea. We are so grateful for the team that makes this possible!

    Carlos Irizarry & Sarinette Caraballo
    RedeLit Co-Founders


  • The customer discovery process not only helped me gain a deeper understanding of the real market need for my company's solutions, but it also bolstered the value of my grant funding applications with concrete evidence.

    Rodrigo Griesi, Founder & Captain at NEPTUNYA Ocean Power
  • The FAU team that provided us with customer discovery training made all the difference. These newfound abilities allow us to focus on true courses of action and ignore potential pitfalls using the data gathered thereby minimizing wasted effort and maximizing potential successes. I am looking forward to using these tools in all my future projects.

    Dr. Ward Dougherty
    Strategic Integration Partnership Branch Chief, United States Air Force

MVW is part of the FAU Innovation and Business Development ecosystem. For more information visit www.fau.edu/innovation-and-business-development/.