Whats an idea ?. An idea is something that changes the perspective of how a process is dealt. It could be a revolution or it could be something simple which changes the way a core problem is dealt. When you have an idea, you feel that its the best in the world and its going to change the way people solve a problem,

But is it always so ?.

Challenge 1 : The Team ?
Now you have your idea, but you don’t know how to go ahead with it. The first step is to determine you team and then build a detailed plan around it. This is a pain area because you need the right people to handle the right roles. You will need a mix of talents in terms of technical know how  , creativity and of course someone who can bullshit a lot.

Challenge 2 : Where to start ?

Now just don’t start building your stuff without having a detailed case study. The reason is simple :

“What <you> think people need is not what they actually want”

To get to know what they actually want , get a list of leaders in the target industry and talk to them . As you talk,  fill in the requirements and then try to shape your product around 100-200 case studies. The more the case studies , the better the product .

Makes sense ??.

Challenge 3 : Deciding the Architecture

At this stage you have created your requirements and probably mock designs of how your product is going to look like.  Its time to choose the best shape in which you are going to deliver your product. There are many constraints taken in to account

1. Is the product going to be same for all customers (No customization  ) ?

2. Is the product going to be on cloud or on premise or both ?
3. What are the target users / installations you are aiming at ?
4. If its a cloud product , whats the traffic you are expecting ?

This is not it , you have to add more and more questions and try to answer all of them to decide the right architecture. Talking to people who are successful helps in identifying the right kind of architecture.

Challenge 4 : Sales Solves everything

Finally, It all comes down to sales. The process has to be systematic and requires some prerequisites before you actually start working on it.

1. Once you have decided  your release date, try to have all sales materials ready by the time you are ready to launch
2. You should be ready with materials for  at-least 3 years of life cycle of the product. For eg: Launch date , Launched week, One month after the launch, After first milestone achievement etc.
3. Make sure you have presence in all social networking platforms and try to reach out to maximum people before your launch. Use the contacts effectively once you have launched the product.
4. Try not to hire someone to do the sales part for you. Dedicate some time to understand your clients and change your sales plan accordingly. You may use external help once you are settled, but not during the starting phase.
   

   Knowing what your client needs is as important as knowing your product.

5. Send periodic emails to potential customers to make sure your product is still alive and rocking  .

Challenge 5 : Stay Focused 

This is the hardest part of it. Stop working on multiple things and focus on what you think is the best for you and your company. The key factor is to stay focused on the product that you have launched and making it better everyday. This happens with continuous sales or bringing on-board and investor.

—
Samjad Mooppan
Co-founder of 4 failed products
And working on 2 now 🙂