Estimated reading time: 3 mins
Exploiting a gap in the market doesn’t always need a large executive team sitting around at late hours of the night, with takeaway boxes lying around while everyone brainstorms.
If you’re a small business or a freelancer, you’re going to be in a state of purgatory in the very beginning. You’re not trying to keep hold of territory from a competitor, and you’re not trying to rank higher up the totem pole when it comes to stock shares either. As an entrepreneur, you’re looking to do something no one else has thought of. This requires thinking outside the box, really taking the time to study what’s been done before and putting your ear to the street to find out what customers want.
The gap
Winning products deliver more bang for buck; which is precisely what exploiting the market should be led by. It isn’t only about price, something that’s successful has more value in a number of ways. The value should be tangible, something that adds practical use into people’s lives, either making it more convenient or information-driven to give them more options how to live. There are companies out there solely dedicated to hearing your idea if you’re in the digital world such as The App Developers. Out of nowhere, apps have become the go-to for consumers who need information about news, weather, shopping, maps, and trading. However, leisurely apps like games, sporting stopwatches, security and something as basic as a flashlight program has made people’s more fun and interactive. Addressing the gap in the market forces the competition to share the market with you by attracting new customers and dissatisfied customers.
Target a customer that targets a goal
Nothing in life is free, and neither will your warpath into the market. You will need to go to many investment meetups and business exhibitions. But before you do venture out, the product must have high ROI potential. Since the invention is inherently risky because of its untested nature, avoid a low return probability. This could be solved by something as easy as going into the market with confidence and pricing the product to compete directly with the opposition. Or something like a package deal, involving a subscription, discount for buying in bulk, online benefits on the website, allowing customers to have exclusive testing privileges for any future product, etc. The key is to build up a rapport with the consumer, lure them in, and protrude professionalism for them to be able to make the leap and buy your invention.
Bringing something new to the table
Inventing something truly amazing is one of the most difficult things to do in life, not just business. In order to qualify as something new, the product cannot have been done before, anywhere, ever in the world. The greatest weapon you have as an entrepreneur to enter into a dimension in your mind where this is possible is your passion. Your idea should arise from a personal experience or from an experience that you’ve heard of happening to your friends or family. Don’t invent something that you aren’t excited about. Everything will fall by the wayside if you don’t have a passion for making the needs and lives of your customers the true inspirations for action.
