Over my nearly 20 years in communications, I’m often confronted by the question – does this make sense; is this location any good; are we a good fit for the market? That’s the first thing you should always ask yourself when investing into something new, whether that’s a product or even a new franchise. You have to know who your customers are first and how to engage that audience. If your customer doesn’t understand how your brand works for them personally – they’re going to be reluctant to buy anything at all.
Truth is, you’ll probably never be able to scale until you’ve found the product market fit – that magical place where people simply can’t get enough of what you do. It’s the place where unicorns live in the business world, but it’s also incredibly difficult to understand. Just because people are buying what you are selling doesn’t mean you’ve achieved “product market fit,” and likewise just because you’ve haven’t achieved massive growth doesn’t mean you’re not on the right path.
Know Your Why
It all starts by understanding who your core customer is and how they live, work and play. Stop trying to find the soft spots where your product might fit and instead have a clear understanding of what your product is and why your audience will care. If you don’t know who the core customer is, then your “why” will inevitably be off target.
Evaluate the Market
This is often tricky because we’re creatures of comfort. Close to home feels safe and easier because there is less perceived risk. While sometimes true, I would challenge that you need to make sure you’re asking yourself some basic questions first before determining market availability – 1) How many users are there currently? 2) What’s the potential for new users? 3) What are their barriers to acquisition? The right market doesn’t just showcase the potential for growth; you have to be able to understand its dynamics and how it functions in order to take full advantage as an entrepreneur.
Use Your Customers
No product and no brand is perfect right out of the gate. You have to adapt, evolve and change in order to progress. Take advantage of analytics and data driven insights from your customers in order to grow and meet their future needs. If you understand what they like to read, where they shop, what sports they watch, how the react to positive experiences and what they would tell their friends – then you start to craft a clearer picture of what can work, where the gaps are and what might possibly lie in between.