Avoiding the Top 7 Mistakes In Bringing New Products to Market By Steve Tennant.

Avoiding the Top 7 MistakesIn Bringing NewProducts to Market

By Steve Tennant

Meet Alex

Also known as…

Ms. Product Manager

Alex lives in…

Flickr: http2007

and went to school at…

Flickr: matsuda.yukihiro

She drives a…

and has been asked to bring a new …

Can she avoid common new software product …

Today, 50-95% of new products

fail.

Why do new products fail?

Inadequate Market Analysis

Product Problems or Defects

Lack of Effective Marketing Effort

Higher Costs Than Anticipated

Competitive Strength or Reaction

Poor Timing of Introduction

Technical or Production Problems

All Other Causes

10% 20% 30% 50%40%0%Percentage of Companies Citing (n=233)

Source: Conference Board as cited by R.G. Cooper, Winning at New Products

Primary Causes of Product Failure

The reasons products fail can be addressed.

The reasons products fail

can be addressed

Flickr: Cynfreelancer

To do so requires a paradigm shift that challenges many of your current beliefs.

These Flawed Beliefs Help Cause “Train Wrecks”

1. “We need to complete the product before I can show it or talk to customers.”

2. “Our (business and/or compensation) plan says we must ship a new product in six months.”

3. “Once we’re done building, we’ll give it to sales…”4. “We’re opportunistic. If we find one customer who

wants something, we’ll build it.”5. “The answers to our most important questions can be

found from inside our four walls, or on the Internet.”

Alex began to wonder, what can I do to

make my new product…

that question?

How would you help Alex answer

Before we build a better mousetrap, we need to find out if there are any

mice out there.”- Yogi Berra

Tip 1 Clarify your target market

Tip 2 Draft the buyer personas:

titles, roles, goals, top 2-3 problems

Tip 3Validate the problem, roles, goals

and your prototype with 20-30 prospective customers

What’s frustrating about doing Job X?

Our new employees run screaming they hate it so much.

Sample Interview Questions

• What are your top 3 goals? Challenges?• Typical day in your life?• How do you solve this problem today?• Who would you trust for advice?• How would you want to buy it?• What would you expect to pay?• What services would come with it?• If you had three choices in front of you, what criteria

would you use to evaluate them?• What did you expect to talk about that we haven’t?

Tip 4Perform a market sizing, market analysis and competitive analysis

Tip 5Use a new product process

Tip 6Prove with early adopter

customers before launching

Tip 7Develop a realistic marketing plan

and customer-centric message

Tip 8Use a Proven Sales Model and

Enable Sales With What They Need to Win

Transactional Selling

ConsultativeSelling

EnterpriseSelling

Unprofitable:You lose

Poor service:You lose

Investment in each transaction by Your Company

Investment in each transactionby Customer

Recommended reading: Neil Rackham, Rethinking the Sales Force

Now Alex knows…

What her customers need

…how her product

is different

…what her sales force needs

…and how to make her

new product

Thanks to…

Grow your technology company. Faster.

Tennant Consulting Services

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Positioning & Messaging

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Products

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Avoiding the Top 7 Mistakes In Bringing New Products to Market By Steve Tennant.

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