Cannot agree more! Most tech businesses are started as a result of founders not been able to find an acceptable solution to resolve a problem they had. Very few if any, start tech companies without having a problem.

Level of market research that goes in before starting varies as cost of starting up reduces. In my opinion there are two routes to success, one being revenues and profits; and the second being metrics such as traffic, number of users, level of venture capital, etc. In the second case, revenues can be generated at a later stage either by the company itself or by selling to another party who will be able to find better revenue propositions. What is required is identifying, which type your company fits in (including a hybrid) and then drive it forward to achieve your goal, anyway you can.