Do you know Apple once launched a digital camera? And it failed?
Here is an excerpt from a book I can't recommend more- The Design of Everyday Things by Don Norman
"Ideas that are too early often fail, even if eventually others introduce them successfully. I’ve seen this happen several times. When I first joined Apple, I watched as it released one of the very first commercial digital cameras: the Apple QuickTake. It failed. Probably you are unaware that Apple ever made cameras. It failed because the technology was limited, the price high, and the world simply wasn’t ready to dismiss film and chemical processing of photographs. I was an adviser to a startup company that produced the world’s first digital picture frame. It failed. Once again, the technology didn’t quite support it and the product was relatively expensive. Obviously today, digital cameras and digital photo frames are extremely successful products, but neither Apple nor the startup I worked with are part of the story."
It is therefore vital for you to design your product for the market needs. Even an amazing product is destined to fail if not released at the right time.
Must follow tips to validate your product or service viability-
1) Understand your potential market.
2) Have a deep analysis on consumer's buying pattern, their choices, demographics, and their problems with the current available product.
3) Have a deeper insight to the problem you are trying to solve. Understand whether the potential customers are aware that they are facing a problem.
4) Perform the estimated cost-analysis for the product, and match it with consumer's buying pattern.
5) Check if the tag words for your product are trending in Google trends or Adwords. That way, you'd know if people really look out similar products.
For a small business owner, these activities might cost an investment, which I agree may not be wise to do. But, if not perfect then they can do the research at their level and progressively increase the level of research from time to time.
At the end, what matters is awareness to these factors. I have noticed several of my friends doing business but are unaware of the market potential (in terms of numbers, not hearsay). Try not to fall under this bracket.
Before I end this post, let us look at one more product that failed because of wrong timing-
Web TV
Back in 1996, it was one of the first to offer internet services through television. But, the market was not ready, there was a lack of internet infrastructure, and it died down with time. Microsoft had to say RIP to this product.
The examples I shared are from the big, famous companies. You can imagine how many such products or services on daily basis go in their own grave.
Conscious awareness of the market potential is the key to success.
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