Why Products Fail Online and Off (part 3)

by James Fowler
www.mywebsource1.com

Not Going the Distance.

There are good ideas created every day. Anyone can come up with a good idea. The problem with most ideas is that they are implemented poorly. Is it because that the creator of the idea doesn't know what to do to get it off the ground? Maybe. Most likely, though, products fail because of the fear of taking the product the distance that it needs to be taken. How many times have you heard a client complain that they are number two (or three)? Their product is better, they have the right distribution and penetration, but they just can't catch up to the number one. Part of this reason is because they aren't positioned as number one. For more on that, read "Positioning" by Ries and Trout (which, shame on you if you haven't). More likely the reason is because they are too busy chasing number one to become number one. They will shadow move for move their main competition. What ends up is that they are never the first to do something. By the time they make their move, they are promoting "old news" and people are onto the next thing. It is very important to do things first and be known for doing it first. Reis and Trout actually have a rule for that. But you read it, I don't want to spoil anything. =) Going the distance doesn't stop there. Going the distance is a concept put forth by another great marketer, Seth Godin. He calls it "Edgecraft". I don't. I call it going the distance. They are basically the same thing. Going the distance falls into numerous categories: ones that confound expectation, ones that satisfy real needs and desires, ones that address overlooked senses. You can go the distance in many ways. No one tells you what direction the distance is. It just is. The problem is that you have to do it. Imagine you are at the North Pole. There is a flat sheet of ice in every direction. You have food, water, shelter here, thanks to some benevolent benefactor. Now you have four choices to make.





a. Stay where you are. It is safe. All of your needs are taken care of and you currently have no worries.

b. Start walking on a path that someone else already took. You heard they were successful. You should do it, too.

c. Follow the other guy, but only go a safe distance part way, so if there is a storm or you twist your ankle, you can still get back to the safety of your camp.

d. Walk off in your own direction.
Well, if you chose "a" you are safe for the time being. There are no hidden dangers. The key words here are "time being". You are sooner or later going to run out of food and water. A storm will come by and your roof will fall off. Staying there will keep you safe only for so long.



If you chose "b" you should do all right. I mean someone is already successful there. But, what if they were successful because they ran into a boat that took them to the nearest port? In the business world, they were in the right place at the right time. Now, you've followed them there and don't have the same success. You just screwed yourself. Choosing "c" is the worst choice. You are dooming yourself before you even start. You have no intention of going all the way. You are going to do it only to the point where you are safe. You are following the other guy who is probably sipping daiquiris on the cruise ship that picked him up. You don't know where you are and you already have put the taint of doubt to your abilities by giving yourself a safety net. Then why is "c" the choice most companies make? Knowing this is the wrong route to take, why would you choose it? The reason, I believe is because the right answer "d" is so dangerous. Most likely, you are going to fail. Sad, but true. Ninety percent of products fail. When they fail, you run the risk of financial mishaps and people are very wary to do something to jeopardize their financial stability. Choice "d" is by far the sexiest answer. Just what if you are right? Just what if this product is in the tenth percentile? I'll talk about increasing those odds later...