Who Are You Selling To? | Nathan Hangen

11 Feb 2010

desire A lot of people get the process wrong. They think “I need a product,” and so they rush to write an E-Book or create something without really knowing

#1 How they’ll market it

#2 Who they’ll market it to

Although it seems that those getting it right are just pulling products out of their ass and that people are lining up to get them, the truth is that most of the people successful in building their own digital empires have done so with patient and deliberate action.

How Well Do You Know Your Audience?

Seriously, who is your customer? Do you know which of your readers needs your product? Of those that do…how many can afford it? Can they consume it in the way you’ve written it? Have you even asked them what they want?

I learned early on that writing E-Books just to have something to sell or give away is a flawed strategy.

Take for example, my first 2 E-Books here…10 Ways to Monetize Your Blog and The Webrepreneurs Guide to Funding Your Business (both free). Both are good books in their own right, but neither really fits what I’m doing here…at least not as well as I’d like them to.They just don’t fit the message that I’ve been sending.

On the other hand, there’s Facebook Rockstar, which I launched just a few days ago. I actually didn’t want to make this course…at least I wasn’t planning on it…but I started getting a few requests; slowly at first, but eventually nearly 25% of the people that bought Twitter Rockstar told me they wanted a Facebook Rockstar.

Interesting right?

I mean, for starters, I wasn’t going to make it and instead was going to make something completely different. But before I did, I decided to poll my customers, and as it turned out…they wanted Facebook Rockstar more than anything else.

Wow…here they are…telling me about something that I wasn’t even going to offer them. It made me think about why I was doing what I was doing, and at that point, I instantly stopped all of my products mid-stream.

What Do THEY Want

It’s not about what you want. Sure, you might have a really cool idea, but have you really thought about who might want to pay for it?

I’m really bad about this. When I first started Internet Marketing and Blogging, I worked on every great idea that popped into my head. The only one that worked was Twitter Rockstar, and I made that one because I bought a shitty E-Book and knew I could do it better. Every single other project was a flop.

It’s kind of funny though, because out of all of the really cool stuff I thought people would want, I learned they wanted something simple. A handy course to teach them how to use Twitter for marketing.

Lesson learned…When an Internet Marketers says that you need to do your niche research and learn about the market before you try and sell something…listen to them. They’re right.

From that point forward…I started thinking really hard about the projects I started. I realized that random ass ideas just weren’t going to cut it. My savvy audience didn’t want something I thought was cool. They wanted something that THEY thought was cool.

Monetization First

And this brings me to my next point, which is that you need to think monetization before you enter any market or project.

I’ve got news for you. The good idea fairy doesn’t pay jack shit. The only thing that pays are customers, and if your idea doesn’t account for some way to get paid, then you don’t have a business.

Free only pays when there is a backend or an advertiser that is willing to front the cost. You can’t just get in to “business” and hope for the best.

Entrepreneurs only have so much time to spend. If you’re spending all of your time creating something that you can’t sell, then how can you have a business?

How are you going to monetize your podcast? How are people going to pay for that awesome Twitter service that you created when they’re already getting stuff like that for free? These are the questions you need to ask yourself before you spend the time to rush a product to the market.

My Experience

I’ve been working with 3 or 4 partners over the past few months, each with separate projects…trying to develop something worth selling.

In one case, we have a really damn good product, but we don’t know how to reach the market. That’s a problem we absolutely have to solve before we create the product.

In another case, we’ve got a really bad ass idea for something that we can’t figure out how to charge for…so we’re still working on it.

The point is not that I’m an expert here, because I’m still learning, just like you. However, I’ve had to toss over half of my notes over the past year because I realized that there really isn’t a market for what I was trying to sell. And even if there was, I hadn’t been educating my audience to desire something like that.

It would be like Brian Clark trying to sell a course on AdSense through Copyblogger. It just wouldn’t work, which is why evaluating ideas is just as important as implementing them. If it doesn’t fit your audience, then scrap it. If it’s a truly remarkable idea, then partner with someone that has an audience in need of it, or build a platform suitable for building one.

I see far too many bloggers rushing to create a product that nobody wants and then wondering why people aren’t downloading it.

Through my experience, I’m convinced that success in this market isn’t a matter of being clever or crafty (thanks Mr. Fields), but it’s as a result of giving people what they want, which many times, is much simpler than we try to make it out to be.

Next time you get an idea for a product…take some time to ask around and see if someone would be interested in buying it. If you don’t get much of a response, then you can take that as your answer. Quite honestly, people don’t need something revolutionary…they need practical and reliable solutions to their problems. Losing sight of customers is what puts people out of business. Solve their problems, and you have something to work with.

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Samuel Rodriguez

We need "hungry" people before making food and having the "best" location.
Alex Blackwell

Reminds of the old joke: "Why did the chicken cross the road?"

Answer: Ask the chicken.

You are right, too often we go forward with what we like, but fail to ask the chicken. Providing surveys, writing a post in which a question is asked, or creating a customer forum are great ways to ask our readers, our customers, what they need and like.
josephb12345

you have provided detailed information..its quite helpful while going through books site i didnt notice many things which you have mentioned here. its quite helpful
Nathan Hangen

Thanks Joseph :)
joshhanagarne

Nathan, I just wanted to tell you that I had a dream last night that was about you and me being astronauts. And you could do three backflips in a row.
Nathan Hangen

Well, I always wanted to be an astronaut...I imagine doing backflips would be an awesome side benefit to being on the moon or something :)
remarkablogger

This is particularly tricky if you're in selling any kind of preventative product or service, because most people only look for a fix when things break and they're desperate. I've helped a lot of clients get past this hurdle when blogging and creating products.
Nathan Hangen

Didn't even think of that...one that comes to mind that I pay for is Terminix.

Anti-Virus software. Online Backup. Medicinal prevention.

What are some of the keys that can help?

I'm guessing it's creating a sort of "panic" based on worst case scenario...but there's got to be a better way.
remarkablogger

You have to start with how your customer sees the problem.
Tim Zager

Good to hear you bring this up Nathan. I learned this the hard way. I can't count the number of times I came up with a 'product' I thought would change the world, only to find out no one wanted it.

Then I heard Marlon Sanders on video...
Student: "Marlon, none of my stuff is selling. I don't get it! What are *you* selling?"
Marlon: "I'm selling whatever they're buying."

Changed everything.
Nathan Hangen

Marlon has some great stuff, yet I'm surprised how few people have heard of him.
TheInfoPreneur

Hi Nathan,

It's good to read this as I'm in this position at the moment and really paying a lot of attention to the people making money, Did you find your future customers always told you what they wanted like Facebook rockstar or did you have to run a poll or questionaire?

May seem a bit dumb but finding out what the potential customers and not the fans want can be a bit of a mystery to most of us starting out.

It's a serious question brother and although maybe look at as dumb and stupid by some, a lot of people will be thinking the same thing, how do I find out what they need, is it just a case of trialling diiferent methods or is that a waste of time and should be all about polling the potential customers first, assuming you can find them.

hope this makes sense
Nathan Hangen

I got some emails about Facebook Rockstar, so I decided to validate them with a survey.

Some of it is trial and error, but the key is to put yourself in the shoes of your customer and try to understand why they are coming to your blog. I used to have a survey built in to my autoresponder, but it became outdated and I haven't replaced it yet. I'll be doing that soon.

I'll have a new post going up next week that talks about some of this in more detail.
Jeffrey

Hi Nathan,
I'm going to pick-up on part of the post, "What do THEY want". David Risley had a post the other day about running a poll possibly to find out what your customers want.
My Blog is all about the New Blogger. How can I poll or ask "what do you want" when the sole reason they are coming to my site is to learn what they really need! As new Bloggers, my readers don't know what they want or need for that matter, they are too new at what they are doing to know any better. They are counting on me to show them the way.
I'm very interested to read your response to this comment.
Nathan Hangen

Well, you've got a good point there. My initial response would be to use your blog to educate new bloggers about what they need and then use it to create desire for your stuff, which will fill that educational gap.

Still, even if they're new...they have to be dealing with specific issues.

Where should I spend my time?

How do I set up a blog?

What kind of content should I write?

etc...

Ask them what issues they are facing and you might get some impressive answers.
Mike CJ

I think you're right and Facebook Rockstar is a product at the right time. So many people (me included) are on Facebook because we feel we should be, but we don't give or get any real value from it.

One thing I would add is this: We do need to listen to what people want, but sometimes, we also need to give them what they don't know they need. Does that make sense?
Nathan Hangen

That's true, but you have to be careful...sometimes what we think they need isn't what they need.

It's a fine line, and unless you're willing to fail a few times before you get it right, then it's going to be a difficult process.
Antti Kokkonen

It's essential to listen to your existing customers, and I mean really listen. When you listen, then understand, and you then know to let go of YOUR desire and give THEM what they want. However, the key is not to give them EVERYTHING they want, but if you figure what they REALLY want, your business will go through the roof...

I listened to an interview on Mixergy.com a month or so ago, about this guy who first created a tool to track code history, kind of version control, but a bit different. He then realized people were not using it for that, but tweaked and used it to do code review instead (which it was not meant to do). What he did?

He listened, focused on what the customers really wanted, built great code review and collaboration tool that people LOVED, made some money, and eventually sold the company (probably for even better money). Would that had happened if he had stayed with the original vision and not adjust to what his customers wanted?
Nathan Hangen

Great point. Look at what some of the early Twitter clients and services did to improve Twitter's interface. Twitter used many of them, but still doesn't get their customer very well. They want to force changes on people, instead of giving them what they want. Will be interesting to see how this one plays out.
Andrew Warner

Glad you go something of value out of my work.

I think it's Jason Cohen of Smart Bear, that you're talking about. He has an inspiring story.
Antti Kokkonen

Yeah, that's the one - thanks Andrew. Mixergy itself is another good example of listening to your "customers", and keeping eyes and ears open for feedback. I think you being here answering my comment goes on to prove that as well.
Sean Smith

Well said Nathan!

Knowing your market is key to any successful business, whether it be a blog or a traditional brick and mortar business. Before you begin offering any products, you had better identify your target market and learn what they want. Listen to them, conduct polls, focus groups, beta tests to clearly identify what need they have and how to fill it.

I can honestly say, I felt completely vulnerable and naked when I offered my very first product all those years ago. I hadn't clearly identified my marketing and conducted the proper research to ensure I was offering a viable product. As a result, I conducted what I like to refer too as shotgun advertising. All my efforts to promote my first product were shots in the dark and fell on deaf ears.

In the web design community we have a saying, "Spend more time on design, spend less time on development". This same concept applies when creating products to sell. Spend more time on market research, spend less time on product development and promotion.

As always, great content Nathan... Wake up... Eat breakfast... Jump out of perfectly good airplane... Write blog post... Glad ya still managed to get it done my friend. Truly dedicated!
Nathan Hangen

Thanks Sean...it took a few beers, but I got there :)

I can relate to feeling naked when you release a product. I get really self-conscious before any release, but I've learned that the feeling is short-lived...especially when orders start coming in.'

The experts all say to spend time on market research, but it's not sexy, so a lot of people ignore it. Critical mistake.
Robert Bravery

So correct Nathan. I have a few ideas myself. But also in a position as to how and where and who with regards to marketing.
I suppose this is why a lot of products fail
Nathan Hangen

Yeah, I just scratched a list of a dozen products that wouldn't fit my customer base but that I thought were "good ideas." Its tricky.
Dave Doolin

Yeah, I'll be tossing a few bones over the wall tomorrow evening (or very shortly thereafter). We'll take it from there.
Nathan Hangen

Sounds good, I'll hold you to that :)
Dave Doolin

Another DDOS. If the website is still down in the morning, I'm going surfing. We'll work something out. Not really happy.
Nathan Hangen

Wow, why the DDoS attacks?
Dave Doolin

I don't know. I posted a screenshot.

The spam is pouring through. I've turned on full moderation on my other main site, and will have to go through and vet some other sites I have idling.

I'd hate to turn moderation on for WIAW.

But I can't keep letting drug trackbacks continue to post.