Product Strategy

Your product or service is arguably the most important aspect of your entire company. The product must accomplish these things:

Sufficient Usefulness

There should be a good answer to the question of why this product or service should exist. That means that the product or service should be of some benefit to someone. The product or service can solve a problem, entertain, educate, improve another thing or make some process easier or simpler, help save money or time, or anything else.

If the product is unable pass this test, it probably should not exist.

Sufficient Quality

The product has to accomplish what it is meant to do with a sufficient degree of quality that is necessitated by the market place in which the company is to compete; the higher the quality of the product, the better it will fare in the marketplace and the more you can charge for it. Charging and being able to get someone to pay you for your product or service is very important because that gives you a revenue model and a business model.

Optional: Making Money

The reason this item is optional is that in the beginning, few companies make a sufficient amount of money to sustain themselves and make a profit. Additionally, there are many schools of thought about whether revenue in the early stages of the company is important or not. For many companies, early revenue is a distraction and founders prefer to focus on making the product to be as high quality and usefulness as possible. Eventually though, nearly every company needs to make money so do have in mind some ways the product or service can bring in revenue.

Further Considerations

When you are thinking and planning your company, consider how necessary this product is to your potential consumers. You must be able to explain why your product or service should exist in the world and how much value it really provides to your target users. Not having a good answer to this question is a sign that the product or service may not have much demand.

If you do have an answer to this question, it must include why, how and how much it is helpful to your target users.

Understanding who your target customers are, and their behavior patterns is a must. If you do not understand your target market, it makes it much harder to build a great product for that market. This will also cause you difficulties when you will be trying to advertise to your target users because they will be difficult to target with your advertising. If you do not know exactly who your best converting target customers are, all your actions and initiatives will be less precise and targeted than they potentially could be.

Further Business Idea Resources

For more on evolving and perfecting business ideas, take a look at the work of Eric Ries and Steve Blank, and the learn startup movement.

Want even more business idea resources to help you come up with a great product? Check out this tutorial on how to get business ideas and watch my video tutorial on with 40 business idea tips. And once you have your business idea for a products, one thing that can help you refine a strategy is to start some sort of initial business planning. Here is an overview of my business plan book that might help you. And if you aren't sure what kind of a business nice or a product to get into and start developing, check out my tutorial on how to find your business niche.

Does Your Product Or Business Need To Be Mobile?

Many people often wonder whether they should have an app as one of the ways their business can interact with potential and existing customers. For most businesses an app isn't necessary. But some businesses can certainly benefit from having their own app. Take a look at this article that takes a closer look at whether a particular business needs to have their own app.

Article by Alex Genadinik