Launching a successful business is one of the most difficult things you can do. It is true that most new businesses fail. However, it isn’t always harsh markets or economic downturns that are responsible for these failures.
Sometimes, companies start with business plans that were never going to work in the real world in the first place. Quite often, the proper research was not spent on developing products or services that consumers would actually be interested in spending their hard earned money on. With that in mind, below are five ways your business can create a great product or service.
Consider Demand
The law of supply and demand will be the thing that determines whether or not you’ll be able to survive for the long term as a business. The reason most businesses fail is because there was never demand for their product or service in the first place. However, just because your product idea is new does not mean that creating demand for it in the marketplace is impossible. Perform the proper research, including direct interaction with consumers, to determine whether or not they would be willing to spend money on your product or service.
Differentiate through Marketing
One way to create demand is through a strategic use of marketing. This is especially the case if a market is rather competitive. Getting your product to stand out on store shelves covered with similar products in the same category requires creating differentiation in the minds of consumers. If you market your product as a luxury brand, for example, consumers may think your product is worth more money than a more generic mass market product in the same category. As such, they may be willing to pay more for it. Marketing can make a huge difference.
Invest in Research and Development
One way to make sure you have a product or service that can sell is spending the time, money and effort on a significant research and development phase. If you rush a product to market without proper R&D, you could face significant challenges when unforeseen problems develop after consumers make purchases. The product or service may even be dangerous. This could, in turn, lead to extremely costly lawsuits that may put your company out of business entirely. The Bureau of Justice Statistics states that plaintiffs win over a third of product liability lawsuits that aren’t settled out of court.
Address Consumer Needs
Another way to develop an effective product or service is to address a need that consumers have or think they have. For example, ASEA has developed a supplement using something known as active redox signaling molecules to provide therapy to the skin. Health and beauty are two huge product categories. Aging is a concern for everyone, and many people are looking for products to slow down the aging process. If you can address a need or perceived need consumers have with a specific product, you can certainly find success even if your product is a completely new idea.
Sell a Product that You Enjoy
Becoming a successful entrepreneur is all about passion. You have to choose a product that you enjoy yourself. Dave Thomas, for example, certainly loved hamburgers, and that passion benefited the product in terms of high quality standards for Wendy’s burgers. If, however, you don’t actually use or enjoy the product you want to sell, that lack of passion may translate to a poor customer experience.
Overall, customer satisfaction requires having a great product or service. However, developing a great product or service that customers will enjoy requires work. Make sure to put in the proper amount of research and development to craft products that will keep customers coming back to your business for the long term.
