Another Cool Tech to Add?
After playing with some AI-generated garden mockups, I thought it'd be cool to let users choose the styles they want, eg. Scandinavian, Mediterranean, or Japanese gardens... It is technically interesting. I could imagine a dropdown, a scrollable style gallery? And I can tweak the prompts to make sure AI generate a good suggestion...
But before I went on a tangent, which could be weeks down the track, I remembered The Mum Test book I've read. So I've decided to do some research on the users online and what they actually already doing?
Observation 1: Successful YT Landscape Channels
Many of the most popular garden-related videos were not focused on luxury landscaping or designer gardens. Instead, they focused on practical topics:
A recurring theme was that viewers seemed to appreciate realistic improvements rather than perfection.
The message was often:
"You don't need a $20,000 renovation. Here are a few simple changes that make a noticeable difference."
This suggests that many homeowners are looking for confidence and direction rather than professional-level landscape design.
Observation 2: Reddit Questions
Many posts were not asking for specific garden styles. Instead, they looked more like:
Many homeowners appeared overwhelmed by the number of possible choices.
In some cases, they could not clearly identify what was wrong with the garden. They simply knew that it didn't feel right.
Working Hypothesis
Based on these observations, my current hypothesis is:
Homeowners may not be looking for perfect gardens.
Instead, they may be looking for:
- Reassurance
- Direction
- Confidence
- Visualization of realistic outcomes
- Affordable improvements
In other words, the problem may not be:
"Design me a Japanese garden."
The problem may actually be:
"Show me what this could look like if I spent a few hundred dollars and a weekend improving it."
Proposed Experiment
What is the cheapest and the easiest way for me to test this theory? Probably not
❌ Building more tools on my website,
❌ Nor is it creating more static pages.
I just need to reply to users who are actively anticipating answers. Instead of promoting a product or linking to a website, I will try to be genuinely helpful by:
✔️ Answering their specific question
✔️ Suggesting a few practical improvements
✔️ Attaching relevant before-and-after visual examples
✔️ Showing realistic transformations
The goal is not to sell anything. It is to observe whether visual examples help people understand and evaluate potential improvements more easily.
Success Criteria
Some signals that would support the hypothesis include:
- Positive replies and engagement
- Follow-up questions
- Users saying the images helped them visualize possibilities
- Requests for similar examples
- Discussions shifting from confusion to specific decisions
Conversely, if people ignore the images or focus on entirely different concerns, that would provide valuable feedback as well.
Would I Keep Building My AI Tools?
Yes, I definitely will keep building and learning. But I now am more clear that those are for my own learning, not necessary for the customers. This will keep me from feeling discouraged when there are no user signups.
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