Background: Who is this Post Intended for?
The barrier to entry for entrepreneurial selling has
drastically decreased. With the advance of technology, much of the sales
process can be automated. For instance, instead of having a sales force with
the primary role of describing a new product to potential early adopters,
YouTube videos can be made and the potential buyer can watch them on their own
time. There are a million more examples like this.
This article is intended for you, an entrepreneur working on
a small team that is developing a new product and trying to entice early
adopters.
Now, the question that must be answered is, what does an
entrepreneurial team need to focus on in order to win over early adopters? The
old answer was sales, selling, and more sales. The new answer is still the
same, but the frame of reference has shifted from door to door salesman, cold
calling/emailing, etc. to enabling the potential buyers to learn about and play
with the product themselves. This is still sales, but involves, less pressure, awkwardness,
and face to face contact as previous start-ups had to endure.
What does the new era of early adopters want in a new product?
First, we need to make some assumptions. These early
adopters are skilled craftsman, such as a programmer. Therefore, for the
remainder of this post, you can think of selling a new development platform to
a computer programmer for an example of a new product team trying to appeal to
a new buyer. The new product that you want to sell has to be accessible from
anywhere and at anytime, such as the internet. The early adopters must have a
means for interacting with you if they choose to do.
The potential buyers, or early adopters, seek a few core
essential aspects of a new product. For the purpose of the subsequent sections,
I do not intend to cover their desires entirely, but focus on a few essential
areas.
1. Examples of Product Usage
When a new buyer interacts with your new product, they are
trying to extract as much experience of what it would be like to use this
product for many hours without exerting much effort. Worded differently, the
new buyer is trying to determine if this product is “cool” without spending too
much time trying to answer that question.
How do you sell a new buyer on the idea that your product is
cool? First, it actually does have to be cool. Second, you can do this with a
short video. This is perfect for everyone. The seller gets to make the video
highlight the best features of the product while igniting a warm feeling inside
the buyer with an upbeat song playing in the background and mesmerizing graphics.
The early adopter gets to see the highpoints of the product and they can
imagine what the product will look like at its full potential, even if the
product is not quite there yet.
Finally, we look at what this video should consist of. In
reality, the new product team should have a portfolio of videos to show
prospective buyers. They must be examples of the product usage. One video example
of product usage can go farther than 100 sales calls. The example must entice
the potential user’s imagination.
2. Starter Kit / SandBox
Congratulations! You have officially convinced the potential
buyer that your product has the potential to be cool. However, the early
adopter might not be fully on board, and given today’s standard of the buyer
having the power in the marketplace, there is a good chance that they are not
ready to pay quite yet. Now what?
The early adopter will want to play with your product before
they buy it. Buyers are accustomed to “freemium” services where they can
interact with the product for free before they begin paying. Early adopters
want sandboxes to play with the product. It is your job as a new product team
to enable how early adopters can interact with your product for free until they
feel more comfortable.
How is the new product team supposed to accomplish this?
That is a tricky question to answer in generic. However, if you have a new
product, and you truly know the type of customer you want to sell to, rest
assured that you already know the answer to this question. Remember, early adopters
want to try before they buy.
3. Support
Congratulations (again)! You have now convinced your early
adopter that your product has the potential to be cool AND that belief has been
confirmed with your start kit and sandbox initiative. Now what?
Chances are that early adopters have either bought your
product or are extremely close to buying it at this point in time. For the ones
who haven’t purchased it yet, how do you push them over the edge to try a brand
new product that they may be uneasy about? You offer them a support team.
If your support/customer service team makes the early
adopter feel comfortable, then you are moving in the right direction. This can
be accomplished with reputation, continuous contact with the early adopter, and/or
beyond expectation customer service. Again, if you have made it this far, you
will know deep down what your customers will appreciate in terms of support.
You are responsible for giving it to them.
Conclusion
This new age has enabled both buyers to become more informed
about new product selection and sellers to reach their buyers in convenient
ways while bringing the best of their product forward. If you are an
entrepreneurial working on a new product and trying to accumulate early
adopters, then you must offer many things, but there are three specific ones at
the top of the list. They include illustrations of how your product can be
used, a starter kit to get curious minds further interested in your product,
and a top notch support team to instill confidence in your product.
Do you have additional thoughts that a new product team
should incorporate into their business? Please comment below.
