Validating a Start up Right to Win (Brand Launch)
The Challenge
A peer-to-peer lending startup needed more than a hunch before going to market. With a globally expanding P2P category and a product built around transparency and community lending, they needed hard evidence: was there genuine demand in Australia, who would actually use it, what would they pay, and how did it stack up against established fintech alternatives?
The Approach
We combined desk research into the P2P lending landscape with a nationally representative quantitative survey of 1,385 Australians aged 18–55. The study was designed to do several things simultaneously ie. map the total addressable market, diagnose the pain points driving short-term borrowing, concept-test the product on appeal, comprehension, differentiation and purchase intent, and stress-test pricing sensitivity using tiered fee thresholds. We then layered in customer segmentation and competitive positioning analysis to identify the highest-opportunity entry segments and define where the product sat against banks, BNPLs, and informal lending.
The Impact
The research established a clear, defensible market entry case. An immediate addressable opportunity of 5.17 million Australians was identified already primed for an alternative. Among that core segment, 53% expressed likelihood to try the product within 12 months, with 69% willing to pay the proposed fee structure or above. Nine in ten short-term borrowers reported friction with existing options (high rates, hidden fees, opaque terms), each one a direct brief for the product roadmap. The client entered market with a validated proposition, a prioritised segment hierarchy, and a positioning that placed them in uncontested territory: low fees, high accessibility.
