Engage-Build-Sell

Money. The one commodity that has the power to determine the outcome of any company.

When you start with very little money, the financial decisions you make heavily influence the outcome of your company. In order to make good decisions with your money, you must think about what has an impact on the product and tailor to that. Focus less on the marketing and focus more on the improvement of the product.

Many new companies fail because they feel that in order to be successful, their product has to be known about and as a result, they focus a lot of their time and resources on marketing. This is wrong. During the beginning stages of a company, marketing should be done by you. You should be the one going out and talking with your future customers because (a) it is free and (b) no one knows the product more than you. This leads me to my first point. In order to build a successful company, you must engage with those whom the product pertains to.

You should engage with your targeted audience and communicate your ideas with them because their opinion of what you have to say greatly impacts the overall outcome of your product. If they love the idea, then continue on to production stages. However, if the product idea is not embraced, abandon it and move on so you don't waste any of your time or resources. This transitions me to my next point, which applies after the product is accepted within the targeted community.

You now must build the product. An important note to take here is that the product does not have to be perfect. Finish the product as soon as possible so you can present it to the individuals you engaged with before, while it is still fresh in their head. People love being a part of the development stage for a product because their voice is heard and upon releasing the product it does everything they want it to do.

At this point, the product is out of developmental stages and it is now time to sell the product. I do not mean sell it for profit, I mean you should distribute the product to the targeted audience, then wait. Wait until feedback pours in, as it should, and address each concern or suggestion in a timely manner. If a user believes one feature would work best in the product, then add it. In the end, they are the ones buying it. Once the suggestions begin to slow and your users are content with the product, you can sell it for a profit.

By doing the following, you can establish your expertise within your targeted market, making you more trusted. People buy what they trust. When clients are pleased, they tell others at which point marketing is taken care of for you and your product begins to grow with much haste.