It is said that there are two functions to any successful business in innovation and marketing. Innovation means you have a product designed to solve the needs of your target audience. However, just because you have an amazing and innovative product doesn’t mean it will sell.
Here’s how to find out if your product will sell online:
Step One. Good old fashioned keyword research. Keyword research is the old stand by because it works. Keyword research is excellent at showing whether there is demand for your product because it provides accurate information about how many people are searching for your type of product. It is a great first step however it is only a first step.
Great places to start researching keywords are:
https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal
https://www.google.com/press/zeitgeist.html
Step Two. Explore consumer demand. Check out online sites to see how well similar items are selling and for how much. eBay for example is a good place to begin. Both eBay and Amazon offer best seller’s lists. This can help you tap into your target audience and potential demand.
Step Three. Who is your competition? Demand can also be explored by examining how many companies are already selling your product or products like yours. Some competition shows that the market is viable however beware of too much competition. If everyone and their brother are selling the same product then it may be difficult to make your mark in the industry.
Step Four. Ask! Make friends both online and off and ask them their opinion about your product. Ask them if it would solve their needs? Ask them if it would improve their lives. Ask them if they would buy it.
Step Five. Test for demand. A great way to test for the demand of a product is to create a flycatcher page. Using a pay per click type advertising campaign on Google or other search engine, create an ad which sends traffic to a landing page.
On the flycatcher page tell people about your product. You can offer a survey or simply have a sign-up form for people to fill out so they can be the first to be notified when your product is launched. This page will help you learn if there is demand for your product.
Once you’ve determined that your product has a good chance of being successful online it’s time to implement a launch and a marketing strategy. Happy selling!