The Tribune

By Simon Cooper

Res Socius

Sometimes, speculative inventors do not realise that if potential demand does not exist, they may not even be able to give the results away. True, creative marketing has been known to create something out of almost nothing, but that’s because it identifies intrinsic needs and then exploits them.

For example, humankind has always needed to communicate at a distance. Mobile technology recognised this fact, and replaced mirrors and smoke signals with smartphones. For every success there are a hundred failures, though. Take Edsel Ford, who thought America would fancy a car named after him, and Coca-Cola, who thought we wanted New Coke back in 1983.

The first question every entrepreneur should ask is: “Where are the customers?” Are they just down the street, somewhere local, somewhere else, potentially everywhere? Or do they even exist at all? Traditional wisdom holds that a product needs to fit the customer, not the other way around. Yet how often don’t we see marketing campaigns directed at the wrong people?

It’s easy to sell something that’s already popular, which is why there are so many mobile companies around - and such long queues to buy fried chicken franchises. But you first need to get your product known, so that folk will queue up to buy it (and want to sell it for you, too). It’s for that reason that a business for sale in start-up mode seldom commands the price the owner wants.

The first stage in marketing is to associate a good idea with an underlying need, or as the preferred alternative to an existing product. The Internet and social media are stacked with excellent opportunities for going viral. Being free doesn’t mean it is easy though. In fact, you have to work at it as a full-time job if you want to stand a chance of making good that way.

Many good ideas do not take off because their inventors expect them to sell themselves. The opposite is true. Behind every product on a supermarket shelf there is determined salesperson that got it there. As you pass by with your trolley, spare a thought for marketers who kicked down doors and broke up cozy huddles. Then remember that as a pioneer, that is your job, too.

The way to sell goods and services used to be to open up a shop. These days, you could also buy an existing business for sale, open up a website or engage a team of click-through marketers to do the job for you. Whichever way you choose to go, you’ll still need that website. That’s because having one has become a badge of respectability.

NB: Simon Cooper is a founding partner of Res Socius, a business brokerage firm and businesses for sale directory service. Res Socius is authorised by the Bahamas Investment Authority to facilitate the sale and purchase of businesses and provide consultancy services. Contact 376-1256 or visit www.ressocius.com.