Don’t Create A Product Before Doing This

How often have you heard this story?

You talk to your uncle at the family dinner, and he tells you all about this crazy new idea he had.

“It’s revolutionary,” he shouts across the Thanksgiving dinner table. “Neon socks. You’ll never stumble around in the dark again.”

You’d groan, but he’s presented so many ideas over the years, you’re already numb.

Now, with neon socks, the problem is obvious:

Nobody cares.

But, so many people have ideas for products that have the same problem, only it’s far more insidious.

And, it even happens to experienced marketers, who should know better.

They overlook this problem because we often believe that our ideas are foolproof.

What’s the problem?

There’s no market or demand.

For many people, that seems like common sense.

If that’s your reaction, all the power to you. You don’t need this article.

Still, it’s always good to revisit the fundamentals.

Anyways, the thing is this: You can only sell to buyers.

You won’t sell meat to vegans.

You won’t sell guitars to violinists.

And, you won’t sell neon socks to anybody.

So, before you go crazy on your new product idea that is so revolutionary, check for demand.

The simplest way to do this is to see what people are already buying and offer your own solution for that.

It’s far easier to add your own product to an existing market than to create a completely new market.

You see it all the time in the weight loss niche.

The basic prescription hasn’t changed since the dawn of time: eat less, move more.

Yet, there are still people coming up with their own unique twist on the market and selling new products.

Another thing you can do is called “validating your product.”

This is when you don’t start by creating your product, but by creating a basic website.

Most commonly, people use that website to collect email addresses and gauge demand for their upcoming product.

Another, and better alternative, is to put up an order button that redirects to an “Out Of Stock” website.

When people sign up to your email list, they aren’t necessarily buyers.

They might get on your email list to get free information.

But, when they click the “Order” button, they have identified as buyers.

You can still offer an email sign-up at this point, and I would encourage you to do that.

These people have raised their hand and told you that they are interested in your product.

When you have their email address, they also give you permission to stay in touch with them.

That way, you can tell them about your product later, should you decide to put it out there.

Whatever you decide to do, I want you to raise your hand and swear this solemn oath:

I will never create a product without first checking whether there’s demand.

Even better: enter a proven market. You’ll never have to wonder whether there’s demand in the weight loss niche.