Businesses like to think their product is so great everybody will want one. (Your product probably is that great.) But the truth is, people buy primarily based on needs and fears, while greatness factors in far less than you might imagine. If your product or service can possibly be deemed optional, marketing it will not be as simple as relying on everybody wanting one.
Look at junk food, fast food, cars, fashion, and makeup. These items are among the most advertised products, yet they are all optional.
If you think everybody will surely want one and bullishly move forward with that idea as the basis of your marketing, I’m afraid the forecast for success is rife with dark clouds. (This happens a lot.)
On the other hand, if you study the market, then strategically position your brand for success, chances are everyone in your market really will want one. The trick is in carefully defining who exactly embodies “everyone” for your product.
Kelly Hobkirk - teaching marketers how to harness strategy, goals, reality, and purpose to connect and do better work.
Kelly Hobkirk has been helping companies succeed in creative ways for nearly 25 years. His work has been featured in Time Magazine, and books by Rockport and Rotovision. Get exclusive articles when you sign up for his monthly newsletter.