Sell the feature before you build it
Hi Everyone,
I've been doing a lot of consults and participating in a lot of discussions and I see a commonly recurring pattern - people build the full solution and then try to sell it.
Whether it's a Saas, a feature or an e-book, there are always ways to sell before you build.
I wrote a blog post about it :)
https://jonathanoron.substack.com/p/sell-the-feature-before-you-build
I'd love to know what you think!
Jonathan
Well, it would be great if it would be the truth...
Building a funnel is not an easy task per se.
Joining the waiting list is not equal presale, they have nothing to do! It's just a waiting list and it doesn't mean anything.
Let me note I'm not against the approach, I personally think it's the best way to validate (not to sell, don't confuse people) but when I hear "it's easy" and "they will join aka buy" I want to argue.
Thanks :)
Feel the same. Everyone says that you should "sell before build". IMHO selling is even harder than building, at least for me. But I agree that validation is a must-have thing, there is no point building software that would serve no ne.
Hi Eugene,
I completely agree with you, that's why I suggest doing the hardest part upfront. If you can get people to commit (and a soft commitment is better than no commitment), then you have a better chance of succeeding when you've built the product, moreover - you have an audience to get feedback from.
Thanks for the feedback,
Jonathan
Yes, I would say that asking for nothing is the worst validation, getting an email is slightly up, but getting a pre-sale is your best bet. Different levels of difficulty to get the commitments, but much better validation. So, you really need to match expectations.
For example, if you are looking for someone to purchase from you, you should really be getting verbal/written or actual money commitments. If your goal is to just get people to give interest for you writing them emails, then email waiting list is the way to go, etc. etc.
Now, you may also have a pre-build funnel as well. Join the waiting list as permission to send them more emails and then in the waiting list funnel, get them to a presale or a purchase commitment.
Indeed, getting actual money commitments or pre-sale is the best way
Hi Jeremy,
Great input thanks!
There are many degrees of validation, where money in the pocket is the highest of them all :)
I wrote this as a thought experiment more than a "how-to".
Cheers,
Jonathan
Hi and thanks for the comment!
I actually specifically said that building the funnel is HARD!
The whole purpose of this article is to try to do some of the funnel work BEFORE building the product - and a waiting list is really just one of many ways.
I've actually put in my credit card for things I knew didn't exist (e.g. Kickstarter) many times.
Seems like the blog post can be misunderstood, so I'll try and think of ways to air-tight it to mean more what we both agree on :)
Cheers
Jonathan
Hmmm...
and
Hmmm... again...
btw, any good waiting list services you can recommend?
It might be very true for some products, but what about those products which the customers typically would want to use and evaluate the product before spending any money on it? We get that a lot for our business and developer facing products.
Few things that can be done:
I find there are many ways to get around it, but every case is unique and needs some creative thinking.
I've actually managed to show Invision walkthroughs to clients and get them super excited.
Another interesting technique is to give manual service, i.e. build the frontend that allows them to commit the data, and leave out the backend. Then manually process the data and send them an email within a couple of hours. If you get overwhelmed with requests, start automating the process :)
There are a LOT of ways to solve this problem, if you'd like to hop on a call, we can discuss this further, feel free to book me: https://calendly.com/jonathanoron
Cheers,
Jonathan
Elizabeth Holmes was pretty good at doing that. It's kinda mixed bag - of course whether it's built or not, it's great to have some kind of buzz around the product. If you sell the idea, fake-it-till-you-make-it, etc, then you still have to execute well or you'll just be a candle in the wind. If you built it then can't sell it, welp, that stinks. Both avenues can very well lead to the same spot. Good strategies, hard execution, a ton of persistence, and a lot of luck (or I suppose even deception 😩) are all good methods to employ (but come on, don't be deceptive 😎).
Hi Adam,
As a big fan of "bad blood", I love that you went there!
I think there's a huge range - starting from Kickstarter or a Gumroad pre-sale to full-on Theranos - we're taking your money with no intention of giving you what you paid for.
Everyone has their moral compass and some people think pre-selling is immoral.
I feel that if you actually intend on building the product you're selling in a feasible timeline, and you don't precharge, but take credit card details for later charging, that's absolutely legit.
Thanks for the comment!
Jonathan
Can't tell you how important your point is. I have been burnt by neglecting distribution and lack of audience when launching.
Completely agree.
Thanks!
I hope this helps other people not repeat our mistakes :)