NEWSLETTER NUMBER 2

Title: "Everybody Will Want My Product"
and other marketing myths.

 

In our previous newsletter we raised the question that if you do everything right in developing your product (i.e. deliver a good quality product at a fair price), will people want it?

People rarely buy solely on the basis of need; they buy what they want.  Even though you need food or clothing, you still buy what you want to eat and you decide how you want to dress.

So, how can you determine if people will want your product?

To some extent it depends on whether you just have an idea, a prototype or production samples.

The key element is to ask.  Yes survey, survey, and survey some more.

If you have samples or a prototype it's easier because you can demonstrate the product, but drawings with clear explanations will yield good information too.

Ask people (lots of people, preferably strangers) if this is a product that would appeal to them and if so, what they feel an item like this would sell for and would they buy it?  If not, why not?

A "no" at this point is every bit as useful as a "yes"!  Why?   Because you need to discover the products shortcomings; you already know its strengths!  Remember, just because you may not agree with a seemingly negative opinion, it may be valid and worth considering.

Where can you find people to survey?  Try inventor's clubs or organizations, people with whom you do business, engage a professionally organized focus group, buyers for catalogues and retail stores, people in parking lots, restaurants, Kiwanis and Rotary clubs and on and on.

You'll notice that friends and relatives are conspicuously absent from this list.   The reason is that you need objective, unbiased consumer feedback.   Friends and relatives may not be entirely candid for fear of hurting your feelings and this can be disastrous.  Lastly, don't try to sell the item to people evaluating it.  Don't be defensive either, get your ego out of the way.  Your purpose is NOT TO SELL THEM ANYTHING OR CONVINCE THEM OF ANYTHING, but to learn from them.

What happens if you get a lot of negative feedback?  Does that doom the product?   Not necessarily but if you are talking to people who would otherwise be prospects (i.e. your target market), you've got to deal with the negatives and fix them.  Then guess what?  Yes, that's right, go back out and show the modified version and get more feedback.  You don't have to make the product everything for everybody.   But some modification may make it more of an item for more people.

There are few, if any, products that everyone will like.  And there are no products that everyone will buy.  The name of the game is creating a product that will appeal to many people and be attractively priced.

Okay, so now you've got a product lots of folks like and say they would be willing to buy at a price that will provide attractive margins.  Where do you go from here?

Tune in next time and read the next newsletter entitled "I Know This Will Make Me Rich".

This newsletter is the property of Solve-It! Marketing Company and cannot be used or reprinted without our expressed written permission.

Our Web Address is:
www.solve-itmarketing.com