Great New Product Ideas? Here’s How To Get Them, Courtesy Of Marlon Sanders!
Hello again,
It’s time I wrote more stuff on my new blog, isn’t it. So here goes…
Have you noticed that I keep writing a whole lot about the internet — well, for me that’s all part of self-help, and the part that I find particularly intriguing right now because I’ve been learning so much about it lately. I’m so excited I can hardly keep from bursting with excitement. But you knew that already, right.
Meanwhile, if you don’t agree, not to worry. I’m working on setting up a few more blogs that are going to be a bit more specialized (somebody told me that was a good idea (and it was Mike Paetzold, the guru of Word Press Blogs). And once they’re all in place, this one will be strictly self-help, well, more or less, maybe sorted a bit, with info on what’s on the other blogs…
In the meantime, I’ll be writing more on this one, and here, for once, is an article I didn’t even write myself.
I just came across it on the site of one of my newest most favorite marketing guru Marlon Sanders, the creator of the fabulous info product dashboard, and managed to get permission to publish it here. So here goes:
Hi,
this weekend I dropped by Circuit City to
buy a couple electronic gizmos.
While there, I noticed they had these totally
smoking hot new DVD RECORDERS.
You heard right. These puppies are not just
players.
They record!
I felt this big rush of excitement as I thought,
“Wow, this makes it brain dead simple to transfer
some of my old VHS speeches to DVD. Not to
mention the ability to record TV programs straight
to DVD.
“What’s more, I can plug my video camera right
into the front of it using the i-link (firewire)
thingy and record video straight to DVD.
How handy.
So I whipped out my debit card and snagged myself
one of ‘em.
….When I got home, the fun began.
I hooked it up. Pushed record and…
BLAMMO.
All I got was an error message saying I had to take
the DVD through set up.
I tried and tried. Couldn’t do it. To say it
wasn’t “intuitive” would be an understatement.
I took a break. Got frustrated. Decided to read
the stupid manual.
Of course, I have a cable box. And NONE of the
hook up instructions covered how to hook it up
if you had cable.
Arrggghhh!
So I go back to the store I bought it from and asked
for instructions. I bought a bunch more cords and
stuff. Hooked it up like the guy at the store said.
NOTHING.
So I actually went to a DIFFERENT store and bought
another one, planning on returning the first one.
The second one had the same exact idiot set up
screen and manual as the first one.
Different product. Same manual!
Geez Louise.
Now, I’m already missin’ more hair in the middle
of my head than I’d quite honestly prefer. But
I’m pretty sure now I’m missing even more.
‘Cause I started pulling it out!
Well, it still doesn’t work.
Why am I telling you this story? Because I went
to the bookstore and bought a book about hooking
up this kind of stuff. Didn’t solve my problem.
But what it shows is that when people have a
problem causing them aggravation, they’ll pay
to fix it. And every aggravation you have is
an opportunity to make money by selling something
that fixes the aggravation.
The other thing I can tell you is that there are
only three basic things we sell: Time, money and
energy.
Whatever you sell either saves people time, money
or energy (for example, eliminating frustration).
Or it helps the person have more of thoses things
in some way or the other.
The next time you are about to pull your hair
out, here’s what I want you to think, “Someone
is going to make a fortune by solving this
problem.”
And sooner or later maybe a problem will come
along where YOU decide to be the one who
solves it and makes a fortune doing so.
THAT is how you get great ideas for your
own products.
Best wishes,
Marlon Sanders
P.S. If you want to get a great deal of insight
into creating and selling your own problem-
solving info product, I have an inexpensive
“gets-you-started” intro crash course.
October 6th, 2007 at 8:57 am
Thank you for sharing!