Originally published in Entrepreneur Magazine

By Jeff Harbach

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Many entrepreneurs, especially those who are new to the industry or have never started a company before, struggle when it comes to dealing with their first customers. It’s not that they can’t find anyone interested in buying their products or paying for their services — which would be an entirely different problem — but rather when to approach potential buyers and what to offer them.

Should they reach out to customers as soon as possible with their idea, before they even start building anything, or should they take their time to create the perfect product and wait to find customers for it?

The answer is simple: neither.

Entrepreneurship is not like most businesses. You aren’t selling tires or pizza, where your customer is clear-cut and right in front of you. Founding a company is an iterative process that is constantly in flux. This can be challenging, but it is also the great advantage of working with a small, high-growth team. When sales aren’t rolling in as expected, or revenue targets aren’t being met, startups are nimble and flexible enough to make adjustments on the fly and address the needs of the market. Larger, more established firms don’t have this luxury.

This starts on day one, and the first few customers are critical for setting the tone of a startup’s future product development. They are a founder’s partner as much as they are customers.

Jeff Harbach is President and CEO of Kauffman Fellows.