So What? Who Cares? Why You?

So what's in it for us?

Those of us on the business side of the early market equation often lament about inventions that focus on "what it is vs. why it matters" ...don't tell me whatcha got...tell me why it matters to someone. 

But having spent my 20+ years working with ideas in early markets,  this is a balancing Act!  Big Time...it's not always clear when you're developing the next generation application, vaccine, therapy, etc. who will care and why will they care -- we need a decent amount of this thinking ahead about what matters.  It's the basis for new discoveries and breakthrough ideas and without it, we'd be relegated to a world of incrementalism...yuck!

Alec Saunders post talks about the Voice 2.0 evolution and how this market will evolve into a market of choice for voice consumers -- next generation services will become more about "what's in it for me vs. what's in it for the service provider".  This evolution will turn this market on its ear and put the power in the hands of the customer (or the subscriber as the service providers call us).   I'm reminded of Chris Anderson's book,  "The Long Tail"  which Alec also points to.  In essence 'The Long Tail' suggests that markets of tomorrow will be made up of small communities of users and that the opportunity will lie in the ability of new ideas to do an exceptional job of satisfying these "schools of fish" as I call them.  No longer will the world be about "masses and market leaders" -- it will be communities and schools of fish -- speak'in my language!! 

The future of Voice is exciting - choice, communities, and customization -- what could be a better value proposition for the end customer -- and even more interesting to watch will be the way it turns the service provider market on its ear - a new business model will emerge - one that is focused on "what's in it for me". This industry is a great example of the power of new ideas to influence an ecosystem and ultimately impact the way value is exchanged. 

And all of this thanks to those inventors who dared to dream about what's next vs. simply what now.

The key to all of this choice is timing -- can the ingenious startups with ideas that point to a future market survive while waiting for market.  That's the $64,000 question -- and the one that has been testing the entrepreneurial mettle of  inventors since time began. 

My advice to these inventors is to find a point in the future and aim for it, but to also be focused on delivering value today -- become a solution to a problem that exists today that people see as real -- it may not be the uber solution you're going for in future, but it needs to be something that people will latch on to now --  you need to make it real today for validation of your idea.  Look for a derivative of your idea that could legitimize what you're doing and get people interested in you - and don't be surprised if your engineers and scientists see if as boring and simple -- often, the solutions to problems are not the ones that have all the bells and whistles - they're just that -- SOLUTIONS to PROBLEMS!!. 

Wise inventors have learned that "making it real" is the key to staying power.  Or lots of VC money -- but if you're short on that like most entrepreneurs, then creating pockets of value along your path to the big vision is the way to go.

Enjoy Your Journey!

Wendy
Wendy Kennedy
author/advisor/lady with the fipcharts!
www.wendykennedy.com

My Favorite Words...It's Simple, Really!

The recent article in Wired Magazine about the Janus Friis and Niklas Zennström's (the brain trusts behind Skype and Kazaa ) idea they've named Joost had me smiling.  I'm always on the lookout for great examples and this one has it in spades.  Early on in the article they are quoted as saying "It's really pretty simple,"  "We've taken the best things about television and added the best things from the Internet."

I love it! - pure elegance - the essence of what they are trying to do -- right there in a short succinct statement. End of story.  What a great analogy to open the conversation -- wouldn't you lean forward and ask for more details if you heard a statement like this?  That's the key to a great analogy that helps people "get" what you're trying to accomplish.  You don't have to tell all -- not yet -- wait until you bait the hook.  Take the time to figure out the essence of what you're trying to accomplish and then express it with this kind of clarity -- it's a great way to get people's attention and avoid the polite nod that comes when you bombard them with all the technical details.

Another nice example in this article that stood out for me was the natural tendency these two entrepreneurs have for focusing on a key market segment.  They talk instinctively about "who cares most" about the problem they're proposing to solve -- and they don't say everyone -- they're looking for "young men" to be the early adopters. 

Have a read through the article - I love the passion and enthusiasm to create something that will turn the market on its ear.  We need to rescue more of these passionate "anything is possible" guys from the ashes of the dot-bomb.  The journey is just not as fun without them.

Enjoy your journey!

Wendy
author/advisor/lady with the flipcharts!
www.wendykennedy.com

Half Baked Ideas!!

It's been a week of looking at recipes that aren't working...yes, in the land of start-ups, we do see a lot of recipes that fail for a variety of reasons...not enough of the right ingredients, too much salt when it called for sugar, and of course those that are half-baked ideas!!

I had two client meetings this week where a little tough love was needed.  The technology is very cool, leading edge type stuff...but the product is half baked!! What I mean by this is the core technology looks like it has merit, but in both cases, the entrepreneur has not fully thought through "Who Cares" and then translated that core technology into feature sets/value that the customer actually cares most about.  The result -- no traction -- the tooth ache -- no money...and the polite nod from investors.

How many times have we seen cool technology that is trying to wedge itself into the market.  We assume the customer need and what's worse, we GROSSLY overestimate the amount of energy the customer will expend to figure out how to make our products work.  We deliver to the customers kinda/sorta products, but often with the features we care most about and not the value the customer cares most about.  We've built a feature set but not a value set.  How's this happen? Because we build stuff cuz we can and we lose sight of building what is needed.  It goes back to my earlier post this week about "would you pay for this".  The sooner we ask the market, the less triage is needed later on.   

And please, do not say that you're going after early adopters -- that's not a segment -- it's a characteristic of some people who make up every segment. So find your customer segment who cares most, and some of the first people you'll appeal to will be the early adopters/opinion leaders in that segment. Use my "Market Fishbone" tool if you're still undecided on who your target customer segment is.

My Advice -- Make a Big "T"
So if this sounds like you and you think you're in danger of being half-baked, then try this.   Draw a big "T" on a white board -- i mean a big large, size of the whiteboard "T".  Write the customer segment name on the top line of the "T" -- then on the left side of the "T", put the customer's real bleeding pains they want to solve.  Put 3-4 bullets of the real key pains they need to address.  Not what you think, but what they are saying.  Get smart on this.  Once you've nailed that down, and only after you've nailed it, go to the right side of the "T".  For each pain point, write down "what do you offer" - what's the actual specific product feature that has been built to address that big pain. 

Be honest and don't fudge it -- don't work right to left, work from pains on the left to features on the right.  If you don't have something to address the pain, use a different colored marker and write down what you could build (potentially) to address that pain.  If you can't address that specific pain point at all, say so.

Sounds simple, right!  Try it, what have you got to lose?  Be the devil's advocate and look closely at what you've built and whether it's "real and ready" as I say for the segment.

Best to learn this now, cuz the start-ups I saw this week are finding it very painful to cycle back on this now that they're feeling the pain of not being "real and ready".  Having some of the stuff to make the cut with the customers is a recipe for doors shut in your face. 

You've got have it all and then some -- just look at how the big guys play the game and then ask yourself, why should it be any different for you?

Simple Stuff, eh? (had to throw in that Canadian translation)!!!

Enjoy your day wherever you are,

Wendy
author/advisor/lady with the flipcharts
www.wendykennedy.com
So what? who cares? why you?

Would You Pay for This?

We've all heard the expression, “it’s not a business, it’s a hobby”.  It’s used to describe ideas that are ingenious but which don’t make any money. That may be because the product is over-engineered and too expensive, or because the idea is ahead of its time, or it doesn’t fit with the customer’s expectation, or the price/value equation is off kilter. As a result, the product is indisputably “neat,” but it can’t be turned into a business opportunity.

The sooner we ask the question "would you pay for this", the sooner we face reality about whether we have something of real business value.  I've been spending a fair bit of time this week with some "on the napkin" ideas -- ideas that are new and novel and don't fit perfectly into categories that are already defined.

I've been pushing these folks to get out with some potential customers and start having this discussion.  Too often we wait too long -- but that's the fatal flaw.  There's a moment of truth that has to happen -- sooner rather than later someone has to ask the million dollar question (or hopefully the $100M question!!) -- Would you pay for this?

The trick is to ask open-ended questions that get will the customer talking in detail – no “yes or no” questions here.  Here's an example of what i mean:  a question like:

1. How do you see this product fitting in to your organization? Who would use it, how often, and why?

or here's another one...

1. Into what budget area would this type of idea fall inside your organization?  (E.g. capital equipment, operational expenses, services). Who are the primary decision makers for that budget domain? (E.g. line manager, finance department, etc.).

You've got to get to this discussion as early in the development cycle as possible -- waiting until the idea is fully baked and you think you've got it figured can be fatal as i said earlier.  Plus, investors are going to be asking you for customer validation so best to get out there and get is as soon as you can.

If you'd like me to write more on these techniques, let me know.  I'll give you some more tools and tips.

Enjoy your day,

Wendy
author/advisor/lady with the flipcharts

So What? who cares? why you?

Just How "New" Are You?

So What? Who Cares? Why You?

Perhaps the title should be "how new and novel are you?"

That's the real question.

It's always nice to be offer some new and unique, but just how new and novel are you to your target customers?  Sometimes being "too new" can be a dangerous thing.

Remember all of us who can't program the clock on our VCRs.

The more new and novel you are the riskier bet you are for your customers.  Investors like to see innovative ideas, but they also like to see customer problems being solved. 

So take your customer's temperature on just how "new and novel" they see you as.  You may have  work to do so make them comfortable that you're not a risky bet.  If you don't fit easily into their infrastructure and systems, this will be a barrier to adoption.  And don't be naiive - just because a customer buys one to "try", doesn't mean they'll scale it out across their organization. They may just be playing with it "cause it's new and novel".

Don't get caught in this trap -- I've been there and it's painful when customers see you as an experiment and not a solution to their problems. 

Enjoy Your Day!

Wendy
author/advisor/lady with the flipcharts
www.wendykennedy.com

Are You Doing Your Spadework?

So What? Who Cares? Why You?

The "So What?" to this statement is all about "So What is the Problem you Solve?" And it's the customer's problem we care about here, not a general statement about industry trends and market forces -- you need to dig in and understand what's going on at every level of your customer's environment.

I know we all think we do this, but I was reminded of just how much spadework is needed to answer this question to its fullest.  This week I was on a customer call with a client and it dawned on me just how much more meaningful the call would have been if we knew this customer's inside-out.  Sure we know the obvious stuff, but what about what's beneath the surface.  How well do we know the rhythm of their business?  And the day to day challenges they deal with?  How much time are we spending really getting to know them?

The AH-HA moment for me was when the customer dropped a subtle hint that there are certain times of the year when they have their heads down and will not be looking at new solutions.  And when they come up for air, the window opens for a period of 2-3 months to do business.  A critical piece of knowledge about these customers that wasn't obvious.

If you're thinking this is stuff for sales guys, think again.  Your customer's rhythm affects your rhythm - shipping, marketing, sales, and most critical -- REVENUE.

So my advice today is to start digging deeper than you ever have before to learn about your customers.  Set up some focus groups, consider a customer advisory board, start blogging with them, or simply arrange a conference call -- we need to crank up the dialogue.

Enjoy your day wherever you are!

Wendy
author/advisor/lady with the flipcharts!
www.wendykennedy.com

The Power of Your Category

I'm constantly reminded of the power of defining your category.

This week I had the occasion to spend time with two different companies, one at the early market startup stage (i.e. first revenues) and the other, a $15M+ company in ramp mode.  In both of these, we anchored the growth plans around the concept of the category.

In the startup, they are building out a new category and therefore pushing hard with thought leadership to "legitimize" their place as a player and leader in the category.

In the other, we mapped out how to mold a new place inside an existing category, and how to educate the target market on the value of this new way of doing things. 

In both cases, the category provided an anchor to focus the team on what's important and what everyone should be doing to help create leadership in the category.

I urge you to bring this discipline to your organization.  It can make a real difference to help clear away the fog about what's important. 

Growth through Discipline....

Wendy
author/advisor/lady with the flipcharts!
www.wendykennedy.com

Categories You Don’t Want to Lead In

Being a category leader brings lots of great benefits.  Some of these are a strong customer following, visibility, and typically, a river of revenue.  But not all categories bring great benefits.  Some examples of categories you don’t want to lead in include:

o        SpyWare

o        Malware

o        Software Piracy

o        Illegal Music Download Software

Naturally, no one goes in to business to be in these types of categories, but if you don’t proactively manage your category positioning and educate the market, you run the danger of being “slotted” in to a category you don’t want to be in. And, it doesn’t have to be a “negative” category such as those above; being labeled in to the wrong category such as entertainment/gaming, vs. educational software, can be equally as damaging. 

And once the customer’s mind is made up, it’s very difficult to change.

So get started defining your market landscape and categories if you haven’t already.  It’s one of the highest ROI business investments you can make.  Have a read through my tips and tools for defining your category to help you get started.

Pop me a note if you'd like some help.

Tie An Anchor Around Your Neck!

There's one business tool I suggest to all entrepreneurs to help them focus their priorities.  No doubt we've all got a million things on the to-do list, but there's a few things we can start doing that will keep us anchored and able to decide what's truly important on the to-do list.  This is one of those things.

There's a concept in business called "market category".  Markets are made up of categories, each with their own distinct characteristics and business behaviours.  It's the category that drives your business, yet most entrepreneurs talk about markets and not categories.  Markets are way too big and distracting - you need to start looking at the category.

Categories are an age old concept for the consumer goods market, but for some reason, it seems to be a concept that's escaped most small business startups.  Makers of diapers, ketchup, cars, running shoes, etc. are laser focused on being a leader in their category.  If you lead in a category, then you lead in the market share.  It's that simple...If you're an entrepreneur building a business, start thinking category.    Learn more about how to anchor your business in a category.