Thanks so much to the great folks at Zintro. They just published a blog post about how I used Zintro conduct a broad market survey and help a client understand the needs and expectations of several different markets it could enter.
I thought this would provide me with a good opportunity to discuss a few of the techniques we use for this type of research, starting of course with a broader view of a Zintro-enabled project.
When you are trying to gain access to a new market, it can be very difficult to truly assess the needs of your potential customers. What may seem like a great opportunity on paper can quickly fizzle as you understand the complex web of alternatives available to those you are targeting. That’s why we always advise clients to back up their go-to-market plans with detailed evidence of market need – driven by real or simulated sales experiences.
No Substitute For Market Evidence
Any veteran product manager will tell you that all the best product launch plans can quickly fall apart when a new sales team starts selling a new product. You may discover that your value proposition is not compelling, or that your target customer is unreachable, or that the people you thought would want your product simply don’t have a strong need for it.
Nothing takes the place of selling when you are learning about a new market. The more of this you can do before you launch your product, the better. Here are a few techniques that we use to gather direct feedback on a sales process before your product is actually launched.
Technique 1: Build an Expert-Driven Sales Pitch
Zintro is a fantastic platform for organizing and conducting a whole bunch of conversations with specific field experts. For us, it’s a fantastic crash course to a new market. Because let’s face it, unless you’ve spent years working in a particular field it can be almost impossible to understand how your target customers will make decisions and why they would choose your product or service over other alternatives that may have existed for years.
When surveying experts, one of the most important things you can have is an effective, highly customized elevator pitch. You’ve got to be able to approach these experts with a succinct summary of your capabilities or offering. Then, the focus of the conversation is to jointly answer the question, “Where does this product provide value to people in your industry?”
Zintro gives us relatively easy access to people who are eager to connect, reinforce their reputation, provide value, and find joint opportunities together. I approached my Zintro conversations as one expert & entrepreneur looking to speak with another, with the hope of combining my product with their industry contacts to uncover some joint opportunity. This successfully helped guide us to the most promising new markets and clarify our value proposition.
Think of these conversations as “building a sales pitch.”
Stay Tuned
Next I’ll write about a couple other techniques we use:
- Technique 2: Build a Lead Engine With Online Sales
- Technique 3: Iterative Telemarketing
I’d love to hear about your comments or experiences getting rapid feedback from new markets. Please comment below!