Product-Market Fit (PMF)

Product-Market Fit is the stage where a company’s product satisfies a strong market demand. Achieving PMF means you have built something people actually want and are willing to pay for or recommend. For startups, PMF is the 'holy grail'—before this stage, marketing is often a struggle to push something uphill; after PMF, marketing becomes about fueling an already growing fire. It is typically measured by high retention rates and strong organic word-of-mouth.