Offering a fake prototype, pretending to be a MVP to gather feedback, could be a great way to achieve the validation process of learning whether the business model is sustainable.

Reference

Ries, Eric. The Lean Startup: How Today’s Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses. 1st ed, Crown Business, 2011.

Highlights or timestamps

The Lean Startup

or even a smoke test: pretend to sell a fake product. Uploading pictures of shoes to a web shop, even though you cannot yet sell any, is a prime example.

— ^493a1e from The Lean Startup

they created a video presenting their idea.

— ^b19b3d from The Lean Startup