I’m enjoying some time off in beautiful Oregon. Spending quality time with my wife Virginie and Romeo our Boston Terrier. Running in the woods. Discovering the region. Reflecting… and limiting my online time to the strict minimum!
While I’m away, I’m experimenting with new formats. Instead of a long-form article, let me share a one-minute sound bite on topics close to my heart.
This week is about understand the market you are in: “Know Your Market!”
Product and business leaders have repeatedly heard this piece of advice. But what does it truly mean to “know” your market?
The answer is deceptively simple: Identify your unique opportunities, calibrate them, and repeat!
But wait! There’s an art to it: you cannot afford to address everyone.
To reach product performance, you have to specifically go after a niche target and solve their biggest hairy problems.
Then, and only then, you can expand into adjacent audiences.
If you’re not sure how and where to start, focus on the following three threads in parallel:
1 – Go out and talk to customers and prospects to discover their biggest current problems. You’ll soon get a sense of the severity of the issues and the size of the opportunity.
2 – Take count of your unique competencies. Map these to the top identified customer problems to see where they intersect
3 – Study customers’ reactions to competition. It will help you spot where they’re falling short in meeting customer expectations.
Markets are dynamic. So, the key is to work on these three threads continuously.
The outcome will be products that delight your customers and help you keep your competitive edge.
That’s it for today’s sharing. Tell me what you think of this new format and if you need help on your market assessment, let the Sherpa be your guide!