By now you've heard of the famous Snuggie--the blanket with sleeves. Their infomercials always sail across the television screen and a simple search with the name on google will give you lists of testimonials. Their target audience simply loves the product!
Although products similar to the snuggie has existed before, the founder of Snuggie used some strategic planning methods to properly position his product.
When asked by Oprah how his company could still see record sales during a recessionary period, Snuggie's owner Scott listed three reasons why he feels his company has been so successful:
- Great commercials
- Great product
- Value Price Point ($14.95)
And guess what? These successful tactics were all a part of their business planning process that was restructured as they went along. They tested 1000 items--these items were sent to friends and family. Soon after, they received more orders than expected. Revenues were projected at 60 million dollars!
Key lesson to learn from the Snuggie startup: Don't be closeminded about your target customer; you can't simply make them up or envision them to be a certain way. Introduce your product or service and run a test to see who really buys. How do they buy--meaning what would they pay for such a service/product and what payment methods? What value do they want added?
Then ask yourself, what would make this customer buy? The answer to this question is what will help you position yourself within your market. The same answer will affect your marketing and advertising techniques. Always stay tuned to your audience and industry because this is where you will find the answers to your challenging business questions.
About the Author: Cheryl Isaac is the writer of this blog and the Founder & CEO of Isaac Business Services LLC; an agency that caters to start-up businesses. http://www.isaacbusinessservices.com/
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