Keith Schacht and Doug Peltz on What Traction Feels Like - at YC Edtech Night

TL;DR

Mystery Science is an interactive elementary science curriculum used in over 10% of U.S. schools. Founders Keith Schacht and Doug Peltz describe how they found product-market fit only after pivoting seven times — shifting from a Pinterest-like resource for science specialists to video lessons for elementary teachers.

Key insights

• Elementary teachers are the best initial target because they lack science training and are “scared” of the subject, so they eagerly adopt a finished lesson that feels like a “virtual science expert” c
• False traction: “awesome product that it turns out customers didn't want to use” — teachers said the Pinterest-like resource was “so interesting” but never actually used it.
• The founders initially focused on science specialists but accidentally got elementary teachers in the funnel; those teachers asked for recorded lessons, which revealed the real problem.