We are not yet through with your market search. A lot of time is being spent here since your consumers will be the deal maker or breaker. If you can’t find the consumers for your business, then I would certainly recommend that your idea is worth dropping off. Customers tend to be attracted to a product because of the value it offers.
Surprisingly, the perception of value is not standard across customers. For instance, there are many vehicle brands out there. What makes customers prefer a brand over others? When you focus on value, some customers will prefer Porsche models because of speed that is the value they are looking for in a vehicle. Other customers will settle for Volvoo because of safety features since safety is the value that those customers seek in a car. Understand the value your market looks for in your competing product.
Talk about your prospective product and receive feedback. Remember that your product must be a significant improvement to the existing ones in the eyes of the customer, which is a cut above what is currently being offered in the market. If your potential customer shows a keen interest in the product, you stand a good chance and can commence by offering a few free samples. If your customers ask when they can get the product and its price, you can be sure about your customer’s level of interest in your product.
A Step Further for Validating Your Product
Have you heard of MVPs? In business, this means the minimum viable product. At this stage, the product should have all the features that can satisfy potential customers, but it is still undergoing improvements. Send that product to a few selected product testers, and you will be surprised by the kind of feedback you receive! The better the MVP, the better the feedback! Carry it as useful information that will guide you to create a functional prototype. The world needs to see your first concept, so prepare sufficiently for it. Review feedback from beta-testers, focusing on what should be added to the final product.
Let’s Wrap Up About Your Market
Market research is vital in your entrepreneurial journey. I spent a much amount of time improving the existence of my market for my vending machines. The chamber of commerce is a useful resource in your market research. Visit one in your locality and get the data. You can also engage a consultant or scholar at your local university with a specialization in business. Seek knowledge, and your successful product in the market will soon pay you immensely.
Research on demographics also cannot be ignored. So, see how you can get your hands on such data. It will reveal useful statistics about your target population.
Modifying the Business Plan & the Pitch Deck
You have probably come across these terms a lot. What is a business plan? How is it beneficial to your business? Have you ever written down some things that you wish to accomplish? So, that would be an amazing example of a business plan. In its simplest form, it’s a roadmap of the things you wish to achieve.
It outlines all information in the previous sections and many more. It needs not to be too detailed or long, since most startups don’t know their business model; however, you must have one, especially if you will be seeking help from external financiers. On the last page of this book, we will offer you a free business plan template (Berry, Landau, & Noah Parsons, 2020).
After writing your business plan, it will be easier to build your customized pitch deck. You will need this pitch deck to convince investors to fund your business and get your next meeting. A pitch deck is a customized presentation, which will enable you to ask for money when it would allow you to increase revenue later. Normally, you would create it using a PowerPoint and email it to your investor to present it face to face to them. Creating it now will help you think like an investor and identify your weaknesses and strengths.
After three years or fewer, you can be confident enough to ask for money, and you will be sure of what you need and how much it will help you increase your revenue. Finally, investors are looking to see if you have a marketing strategy, low startup cost, especially those that cost almost nothing net income (At least $50,000 a year), full financial disclosure, small number of employees, special skills (Guillebeau, 2012), and a sustainable customer growth rate (Weinberg & Mares, 2016). I hope you can now build your business idea with the target market in mind.
