Also yesterday we met with a prospective new client who is planning to bring a new service to the Charleston, SC area. When asked to define the service and what the user would get in return for the fee, the prospective client had some but not all of the user benefits worked out. They had not completed their pricing structure and did not have a solid understanding of their costs as related to delivering the service.

What both of these people have in common is a good idea that may be highly marketable. What they need is research to learn about their prospective buyers, the market and how they will make money and manage their business.

If you are an entrepreneur who wants to offer a new product or service, starting with an idea is great, but then do your homework.

Define your target market. Who is your target customer? And as I was told many years ago, “The world is NOT your customer.” Your customer is some subset of people with unique characteristics. What do they need/want in their lives? Where do they live, what is their educational background? What drives them? How much do they earn? How often do they purchase goods or services in the segment that you want to enter?

Write a buyer profile that will help focus your thinking for your customer. Learn what your potential customers have to say about similar products and services. Read blog comments and user reviews in blogs or in the evaluation/comment sections of online stores. Get into your buyers’ head and know what makes them part with their hard earned dollars.

If you know that you will have more than one type of customer, segment your customers and create a buyer profile for each segment.

Undertake an environmental scan of what others (with similar good and services) are offering in your marketing region (both geographically and if you will be a web based only product, then on the web.) Learn as much as you can about their products, pricing and the benefits to the user.

Use your insights to guide you in further conceptualizing your service or product. You need a unique selling proposition (USP) which will distinguish you from your competition and which will resonate most clearly to your target market.

Begin to think like your target customer. If they don’t want what you’re selling, it does not matter what you say or how you say it, they won’t buy. Clearly define the benefits to your user. Will this make their lives easier, cheaper, faster, more simple? How? That is your key USP. Just because you think your idea is a good one is not a reason to go into business.

And speaking of business, create a business plan. This is your road map to guide you in the development of your product/service. This process is made easier if you undertake it with support and assistance. There are many who are available to do this including SCORE (Service Corps of Retired Executives) who offer their services in many communities. Some people may find a business coach helpful. Don’t overlook The Small Business Administration (SBA) Business Information Center which is co-located with SCORE. Another small business resource is the The Frank Roddy SC Small Business Development Center of SC with centers around the state.

Develop a management plan. Who will keep your books? What systems will you use? How will you bill? Collect monies? Where will you be located? Will you need employees? Who will sell your products? Do you need to be web only or do you need a bricks and mortar location?

Begin with an idea, but then do the work to test your idea, create a plan so you know where to go with your idea and create a structure that will give you the support you need to build a business. And if you need help when you’ve undertaken these steps and are ready to bring your product to market, call me.

We proceeded to discuss his passion, the creation of a group of nail spas with highly responsive customer service and high-quality surroundings. Steven asked question after question on marketing. He told me of the books he’s read. Of the vision he holds for capturing a part of the market with exceedingly high service, atmosphere more like a traditional spa than a typical nail salon. Of a customer loyalty program that he wants to start. Of gaining customer trust and the customer’s point of view. Of the money he saved for years to self-finance his dream. He could have taught a course in marketing and business development.

What’s his story? Coming to America as a 6 year old boy in the company of his father, mother, half-American-half-Vietnamese sister who had an American soldier father. His mother with her half American child was ostracized in Vietnam. They moved from the small village where they lived to the even more rural countryside where they lived afraid of the communists who would persecute her for her half American child. A friend told her that the family could come to America because they had a half American child. And the did. Sponsored by a church family on the west coast, they came.

Steven tells of speaking no English. Of children who made fun of his hand-out clothes and mismatched socks. But he also tells of working hard, of dreaming, of saving to realize his dream. Steven lives his dream. He breathes it and in doing so, inspires me to envision more from myself.