"How do I know if my product is crap?"

[Kevin-VirtualProfitCenter]

I got this question from one of my Mastermind partners the other day and I thought it would benefit some of the folks here.

The real question you should ask is this: Am I overdelivering, underdelivering or do I have it just right?

We like to talk about overdelivering, but in reality it is a good way to stay broke and work 70+ hours a week, robbing your family and self of the resources and time they deserve.

Let's face it: People will take from you anything you're willing to give. So while you talk about "overdelivering" you're going to end up giving lots more than you deserve to get.

Underdelivering is also not good. It causes excess refunds, ruins your reputation and, in the long run, will take you out of business.

So how do you know when you've got it just right?

First, look at your product and compare it with your sales materials. Do you make it easy for your customers to find all of the products and materials promised? Can they get the reasonable amount of customer service they need to use your products?

Next, look at yourself: Are you answering every email with "sure, since you're a customer I'll be happy to do that IN ADDITION to what the sales materials promised." If you are, chances are you are working for free. Not for a low wage; not for minimum wage; for free. I have seen people work a dozen hours out of fear that a customer might ask for a $50 refund on an eBook.

No person with self-respect will expect you to work for them for free.

Third, look at your refund rate. If it is zero or close to it (and you are making a significant number of sales) then you are likely doing too much for the money. If it is higher than the industry average, then you are doing too little.

My two cents, hope this helps!

[Mukul Verma]

Kevin, great post and great insite!!!!

We tend to work for free on many things and not put our time with the things that are most important.

[Kevin-VirtualProfitCenter]

Originally Posted by Mukul Verma

Kevin, great post and great insite!!!!

We tend to work for free on many things and not put our time with the things that are most important.

Good insight Mukul. Imagine all the marketing and strategic planning we could be doing if we weren't so worried about pleasing everyone--even those people who will never be happy!

[Mukul Verma]

Originally Posted by Kevin-VirtualProfitCenter

Good insight Mukul. Imagine all the marketing and strategic planning we could be doing if we weren't so worried about pleasing everyone--even those people who will never be happy!

I hope this is not a thread hike, but to increase the discussion.

I recently made my first IM product (I have done been online in other niches for over 5 years) and it was a complete step by step for Video Marketing. Now for people who are advanced, would find this new (crap), but people who dont know anything or want to add video marketing to get more traffic, I believe would find it quality.

So what may be quality to 100 people, may be crap to 2 people. So how do you engage your audience to take that its quality?

My answer was to gear the sales page, that will attracts people who know 90% and are looking for the details.

[David McKee]

Excellent advice Kevin!

One of the reasons I think many of us over-deliver is because we take so much pride in the products and services we provide that we have this sense of "that's my baby!", I want everyone to love it...and I will do anything to make it the best...

And, as you pointed out, we forget that it is a thing - and perhaps most sad, if we give our "real babies" or our family the left-overs...

Knowing when it is done, that is perhaps the hardest part of product creation for some of us, especially those of us who develop software or who write, we always want to "tweak this or that" - and when someone complains, we start thinking again "how could I make this better"

Well, how we can make something better is a good question, but only if you can generate additional value for yourself from making it better, otherwise you need to be able to say No - both to yourself, and sometimes, even to customers.

Thanks again!

David T. McKee

[Raydal]

I prefer to let the market determine the value. So I would start
selling at a price I consider to be low and then raise the price
as the sales come in until I pass over the bump in the curve.

I then use the top of the curve price as determined by the
market. Maybe that's not the best way but that's how
I gauge my delivery value.

-Ray Edwards

[Mike Anthony]

Originally Posted by Mukul Verma

So what may be quality to 100 people, may be crap to 2 people. So how do you engage your audience to take that its quality?
.

Great point. I have three things I look at. I know any product I am thinking about developing is crap when

A) The gist of it could be conveyed in doing a few searches on Google.
B) If it took me a day or two to formulate (not record - formulate in my mind )
C) if the price I ask for it is what I want to get not what I would pay.

So you could come up with a product for beginners that has taken you years to formulate that would seem like crap to a seasoned IMer because he's already been there done that. They just aren't your target market. Doesn't mean its crap.

[JohnMcCabe]

The whole idea of "overdelivering" has been twisted. It has nothing to do with giving more and more, for free, because someone is a buyer.

To me, to over deliver is to provide a product or service that does everything the offer promises, and a little bit more. Or, a little bit better than I expect.

Here's an example...

A very popular product format is the audio plus transcript.

Under-delivering: The audio doesn't cover the material promised in the sales letter, or requires an additional, undisclosed purchase. There's no editing, just the raw audio. The transcript is a word-for-word dump with little formatting or editing.

Average: The audio covers the material promised. The sound level has been normalized, and the worst of the coughing fits have been cut out. The transcript is at least readable.

Over-deliver: The audio is clear, nicely edited and along with covering the material promised, it's peppered with tips and resources not mentioned in the offer. The transcript is clean, formatted for easy reading, has clickable links to the resources mentioned when available, and may have a list of further resources. There might even be an unannounced bonus or two...

Notice that nothing in my description of over-delivery involved putting in several hours of unpaid work just because someone bought the original product. Nor does it mention becoming an endless fountain of freebies.

[David McKee]

John,

I agree with you as well - but I think the original post was saying, as I tried to say, that sometimes our products become like living, breathing, things to us, and we want to make them so good, that we forget that there is a time to say: "it is done."

But as far as overdelivering by making the quality of your product the best you can, and perhaps even a little bit better than your sales copy tells it, is an excellent way of keeping return customers...

DTM

[Kevin-VirtualProfitCenter]

Originally Posted by David McKee

John,

I agree with you as well - but I think the original post was saying, as I tried to say, that sometimes our products become like living, breathing, things to us, and we want to make them so good, that we forget that there is a time to say: "it is done."

But as far as overdelivering by making the quality of your product the best you can, and perhaps even a little bit better than your sales copy tells it, is an excellent way of keeping return customers...

DTM

I think what is actually at the root of it is not so much that we view our products as our babies, but that we are so scared someone might not like what we have put out there.

Every time I do a new product promotion I get butterflies--less now than 10 years ago, but I still get them. What will my list think? Will I get angry emails? Refunds?

Our egos our tied up in people liking us so when people reject our products we often feel like they are rejecting US.

We have to use some objective measure to say, "No, this is a good product, that person is just a bad customer."

[Mukul Verma]

Originally Posted by Kevin-VirtualProfitCenter

I think what is actually at the root of it is not so much that we view our products as our babies, but that we are so scared someone might not like what we have put out there.

Every time I do a new product promotion I get butterflies--less now than 10 years ago, but I still get them. What will my list think? Will I get angry emails? Refunds?

Our egos our tied up in people liking us so when people reject our products we often feel like they are rejecting US.

We have to use some objective measure to say, "No, this is a good product, that person is just a bad customer."

You will not tell someone that there baby is ugly, but you will be kandid on there product if it does not deliver

[Kevin-VirtualProfitCenter]

Originally Posted by Mukul Verma

You will not tell someone that there baby is ugly, but you will be kandid on there product if it does not deliver

That's why we need an objective measure (like refund rate) because there will always be SOMEONE who thinks your product is a dog and someone who thinks your product is AWESOME. We probably shouldn't make decisions based on either of those people.