A buyer wants a great business and they will look at many different aspects of your business as part of their due diligence. The product you sell is only one of these things, but it is important. Here are four ways to develop your product to give it more value to your marketplace and by default to your eventual buyer.
1. Have a twist. You don’t have to have the most original product on the market. But whatever it is, make sure it has a twist. Whatever your product or service is you are likely to have competition. The trick is to package your product in such a way that it seems different to (and therefore better than) your competition.
2. Meet the need. A product or service that recognises a feature or need in the market and cleverly builds a solution has the potential to have mass appeal. You can do this whatever industry/niche you are in. One of my favourites at the moment is Xero (www.xero.com) – an online accounting packages that has made book keeping easy, affordable and even ‘sexy’! The founders of Xero knew that small businesses were frustrated with the options on the market and they met the need, using the latest technology to provide the best solution.
3. Be unique and cool. The internet enables people to browse and compare products and brands with more ease and efficiency than ever before. So a great looking brand… something different and appealing is even more important too. Say things in a different way, be the breath of fresh air you know you would like to find when you are browsing for something.
4. Be revolutionary. Changing the paradigm of the industry you operate in can add phenomenal value to your business if you get it right. Xero were in this territory, they broke the mould. Can you?
Exercise: Write down three things you could do to revolutionise the industry you are in. Don’t worry if you never implement it, just stretch your thinking to see what value there might be for a future buyer if you really broke the mould.