New Product Strategies: Opportunity May be Knocking

I am currently reading Hot Button Marketing by Barry Feig. (See reading list.) It provides lots of great insights about what really makes people buy.  While reading this, I came across his article, "Getting to NO: Listen closely when consumers reject your product and you could hear opportunity knocking."  It discusses how to approach the development of your marketing message so that buyers get past the emotional component to really see the product's value. 

He recounts how the Glad Lock Bag seal (yellow and blue strip becomes green)  was rejected by focus group after focus group because the consumer thought she was being 'taken for a dolt.'  They repositioned the message and had a big hit on their hands. 

One response to heavy negative feedback could have been to scrap the seal or not focus on it.  As you can see, this would have been a huge mistake.  Instead they crafted the message based on the consumer's perception.  This illustrates a really key point for small businesses.  Start with the customers perception of your product and build your marketing message from there.  Don't assume you know how your product will be pereceived without asking.

Technorati tags: marketing new+product+strategies marketing+messages

Comments

[Simon Small (youngbusinessman.typepad.com)]

Thanks for the post, this is very refreshing. I am in mixed media advertising sales, although I don't take NO's as a personal rejection, I do need to review the NO process a little more, consider ways that we can modify our offering/proposals/sales process...

Hopefully this will result in less NO's :)

Cheers