THE DEMAND TEST + FOUNDING RESERVATION TERMS
From "The One-Person AI Business — Basics", Chapter 4
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The most expensive word in this field is BUILD. A finished product nobody
wanted cost far more to make than an unfinished one. So you ask for money
BEFORE you make the thing — a rough offer at a founding price, tested by a real
deposit. The ask IS the test of your offer and your price at once.

⚠️ Skip the soft "would this be useful?" question. A person can say "yes,
useful!" at no cost, feel they helped, and never reach for a card. Go straight
to the binding ask.


WRITE THIS BEFORE YOU START  (deciding the pass line after you see the result
is how people fool themselves)
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  THE TEST: "I will put [the reserve/deposit ask] in front of
             ____________________________ by ______ (date)."

  THE PASS LINE: "This passes if at least ____ stranger (one is enough to
                  start) puts money down to reserve it."   Money down. Not a "yes".

  THE FOUR SUSPECTS (so a fail names a likely cause, not a mood):
     offer  ·  price  ·  audience  ·  ask


THE FOUNDING RESERVATION TERMS  (write once, put on every pre-sell)
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This box is what separates an honest founding pre-sale from taking money for
vapour. It costs nothing and it is what makes a stranger comfortable saying yes.

  WHAT THEY GET (the exact deliverable, one line — this is the FLOOR; you may
    sharpen wording/audience/build later but may not deliver LESS without the
    reserver's explicit consent + an immediate refund):
    ______________________________________________________________

  FOUNDING PRICE:  £______  (honoured for these reservers even after the price
    rises for everyone else)

  DEPOSIT:  £______  — CREDITED TOWARD the founding price, not an extra charge.
    Balance due on delivery. (So a reserver pays the price once, in two parts.)

  DELIVERY DATE:  ______  (a real one you can hit)

  REFUND RULE, stated exactly:  the deposit is refundable ON REQUEST any time
    before delivery, AND automatically if you fail to ship by the date.

  THE LIMIT IS REAL CAPACITY:  "____ founding spots" must mean the number you
    can actually deliver well — never a number invented to rush people.


THE ASK  (the shape is fixed)
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  "I'm opening [N] founding spots at £X — a one-off early price — delivered by
   [date]. Reserve yours with a £Y deposit, credited toward the price,
   refundable on request until delivery, and I'll honour the founding price
   when it's ready."

  A real price · a real limit · a real delivery date · a real yes-or-no with a
  refundable deposit attached. No pre-question. No warm-up. The ask, straight.


THE RESULT  (both are wins)
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  [ ] RESERVED — at least one stranger put money down. Proof worth building on.
      -> deliver in chapter 8; refine the offer (ch5) and price (ch6).
  [ ] NO RESERVATION — a working hypothesis, not a certainty. Likeliest cause:
      offer / price / audience / ask, because ______________________________.
      Next single test: ____________________________________________________.

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  Yours to keep — free, and no strings attached.

  One tool from the ePORTS One-Person AI Business series. This one is from
  Basics — pick a solo-viable business, make your first offer, and get paid.

  The full shelf, whenever you're ready:  eports.global/one-person-ai-business
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ePORTS — your ecom source. eports.global.