Whenever customers come up to me bubbling with a product passion they can’t wait to get created and sold, I play a little game in my head:
My good cop says: I love that you’re so excited to create your product!!
My bad cop says: Who’s the market for this?
I want to play bad cop and really push you by asking: Will your market actually BUY what you’re selling?
And here’s the best part: you can check out my video below for my 7 criteria for a market that will buy, buy, buy.
Make sure to leave me a comment below. Does your market meet these key criteria? If not, how can you tweak your audience to ensure more sales?
What great info for a checklist!
As far as large market, the market has to large enough. And you have to look at the established competition. You don’t want too much competition. There’s got to be a ‘sweet spot’ with large enough market and just enough, but not too much competition.
I ‘spose you have to Goldilocks your niches to find a spot.
Hey Mark, thanks for your comment! I think if you go back through you’ll find the 7 criteria are more clear that you think. I never said you don’t want too much competition – you WANT a market that has competition as that means there’s a demand for your product or service (the solution you’re providing). I also think mindset plays a role and if you walk in thinking it’s harder than it is (which I’ve done!) then it will be harder to implement. I”m passionate about this topic as I’ve seen it be make or break for so many businesses (including my own). Again, thanks for taking the time to post!
Pam,
I love how you shot holes in the theories of naysayers concerning a product or service, such as the existence of competition,
Thanks!
wow, where have you been in my life??? I finally get the full picture of my market. Everyone talks about this, but no one but you gave the full picture. this is awesome. I’m going to share this with everyone. I might become a stalker of your knowledge from now on. Thanks a lot!
Ha Genie, thanks for your message! I just got back late last night from a two week trip to Australia and this was a great message to come home to. I share your belief that this is the key to the kingdom that creates success (impact, income, etc.) in your business! 🙂
This is very valuable information. I’ve sent a friend to hear this because they are now part owner of company that is new and does not know how to market. Great products, just don’t know the things you’ve just covered in this presentation.
THanks Bill! It takes a bit of detective work to really understand your market but the great news is it isn’t as complicated as most people think. A few minutes a day online and within a couple of weeks you’ll have a much clearer picture…just pick one element a day and start doing some searching online and you’ll be surprised what you uncover. I think also just knowing what to look for makes a huge difference. Thanks again for your comment!
Thanks a lot Pam…
Got 3 out of 6….:(
My clients are company owners who are just before the burn-out level and are not aware yet that this is where they are heading at…
They have not gotten help for this before obviously…
So they are not excited to get the help…
I have to do a lot of work myself to draw their attention as a consequence of this !
Thanks for the vital reminders which I once knew and totally missed here on my latest programm !
Severine – that’s a very common situation with clients. Remember to give them BOTH what they want and what they need – meaning you may have to go in and help them initially with the things they want (the highly visible, sexier things they are asking for) and then as you do that also give them what they need (to make sure they are going after the right, precisely defined market). Love that you are doing this for a client -so valuable!
Thanks a lot Pam. Got it.
I am trying to help them not go through what I went through myself while runing 6 companies all at once, believing MORE was the solution to get MORE and ending up burning myself out and getting myself to the bottom of the pitt…;(
I am all set about the “what they need” but need to improve indeed my offer of the “what they want” first in terms of marketing. I’m back on track thanks to you 😉
I appreciate what you do and no doubt will we work together 😉 Just got on Jeff’s PLF for now 😉
Thank you, Pam! I found this posting most insightful and will share it with others.
As the head of a non-profit, educational institute (our new Web site will be up soon), I have trouble narrowing down our ideal client to someone so specific . . . “Catholic adults who want to know their faith enough to defend and share it” (especially parents and teachers) is about as close as I’ve been able to come. Any suggestions?
Did you speak this fast before Tony..or is it a result of being with him all those years 🙂
Love the information and would love to hear it once at about half the speed…maybe after a glass or two of some nice red wine!
Thanks!
Mark
Ha! Appreciate the feedback Mark – honestly it’s probably a bit of being from back east and working for Tony! 🙂 We do provide a transcript so you can go back and review if this helps you. I’ll heed your advice too -I recorded this on the fly – I wasn’t intending on doing it but I had an interaction with a coaching client that made this top of mind so it was one of those “Wait, turn on the cameras, I need to talk about this now” situations. I hope the transcript helps you (and yes we did get a lot of comments about how fast Tony talks when I was there, too!).
Great checklist, Pam. I find myself thinking I’d need to adapt some of these when marketing from an artist’s perspective. For example, in offering an entertainment product such as a movie or music, it’s hard for me to think in terms of “solving their problem” (unless their problem is boredom and the need to escape, perhaps). Any tips in this regard? Do I basically just take the checklist and swap “pleasure” for “problem” or is there more to it than that?
Great question, Dan. Something I learned when I was working with Tony Robbins – people will do more to avoid pain than they will to gain pleasure so pain is ALWAYS a more powerful motivator. That’s not to say that invoking positive emotions, being aspirational and calling out the upside for people isn’t effective. In some cases and markets, the positive side can also be very powerful (think Nike ads – totally aspirational and uplifting). So the point is to move people emotionally and in the case of art, think of that as your goal, whereas with a training product or marketing program (which is a lot of my market) you’ll want to highlight the problem you’re helping to solve. I LOVE this question – it’s such a great point, Dan. Thanks!
Thanks a lot Pam. Got it.
I am trying to help them not go through what I went through myself while runing 6 companies all at once, believing MORE was the solution to get MORE and ending up burning myself out and getting myself to the bottom of the pitt…;(
I am all set about the “what they need” but need to improve indeed my offer of the “what they want” first in terms of marketing. I’m back on track thanks to you 😉
I appreciate what you do and no doubt will we work together 😉 Just got on Jeff’s PLF for now 😉
It is a reality check list that has stood the test of time. It was around well before the internet and it still works today because all the components make sense in a business environment that is more competitive than ever and probably easier to fail in too! Thank you for the reminder we can so easily forget 🙂
Tana, no need for you to take notes! We provide a transcript of every single blog (right under the video) so that you can download, read and review the entire post. Make sure you take advantage of this feature – we do it precisely to help folks go back and review so they can implement! 🙂
Thanks Pam,
Great information and I can implement this immediately. The seven step criteria steps is awesome.
Very interesting and useful BUT it would be more useful if you could talk a little slower! I took notes and am thinking about the very great usefulness of what you say. But if you have spoken a LITTLE more slowly, I could have taken more detailed notes and so have benefitted more, without haviing to listen over again…as I did for one item.
Thanks.
Thanks Pam, I really enjoyed this blog post. On the eve of the launch of our new board game to prepare young children for testing and kindergarten, I feel like we’ve hit each one of the 7 criteria you are talking about! This was just what I needed to hear today.
You absolutely have, Karen! It’s one of the many things I attribute to your success (in addition to your great products, smarts and business savvy). Keep us posted about the board game launch – sending great thoughts your way for it!
Thank you Pam!
I had never really thought about the best customer being someone who has already purchased a similar type product, even from a competitor but your illustration make it very clear!
Identifying competitors and your differences/similarities makes great sense. It also answered at least part of my question about the 7 criteria – “How could i know they had previously purchased a similar product?” When you talked about competitors I realized, at least with Face book ads i could target people who liked/followed my competitors – increasing the odds they had bought something (presumably from that competitor)
Have a very blessed day!
and thanx for sharing!
Steven, that’s a GREAT point about FB ads. Well done!
This is a great check-list, Pam! Item #5 has me considering how my perfect customer persona has paid for similar solutions in the past. I would love to learn more from you on this particular topic. Perhaps you’ll expand on this idea on one of your future blog posts. I’m so grateful to learn from you. Thanks for sharing wisdom and expertise!
Oh my gosh!! I am so glad this has been shared with me!! My partner and I have been in real estate for almost 13 years. We are always trying to think of innovative ways to connect with the market. But, your advice on picking a specific and trying to market to them I think is exactly what we need to do!! We have worked over the years with many different clients, first time home buyers, down size buyers, experienced buyers……and to market to that many age demographics is very difficult….there are so many different ways you need to do this. Which ultimately is VERY overwhelming!!!!! Can’t wait to look at incorporating these 3 levels into our business plan!! Thanks again