The FRONT-Loading Strategy: Creating Products That Sell

"I don't tell this to anyone, but I struggle a lot to find a buyer. I can't explain to you how painful it is to see no sales after so much of hard work".

Yes, no one tells anyone this, yet for roughly 90% of startups, this is the real tale. Maybe having a few beers allowed him to relax a little.

I also came to the realisation that getting interested customers is a challenge for anyone (including a gig) trying to offer a product or service, not only him as the founder of a product-based firm. However, some businesses have a waiting list of customers who want to use their services. It got me wondering whether there was a formula for creating products that sold like hotcakes. And I discovered that the majority of successful businesses operate differently from those that are having difficulty. I call it the FRONT-loading Strategy.

The front loading approach got its name from the fact that businesses frequently utilise it at the beginning of the product conceptualization process. This approach consists of five steps, which when combined form the word FRONT:

FEEL – REACTION – OPINION – NEMESIS – TRENDS

The first stage is to look for pain points that people experience in their daily lives. The more common the challenge, the higher is the chance of success. These pain points may include inefficiencies, discomfort, or inconvenience. An innovator must take the time to observe and hear the problems. These difficulties most frequently manifest as outward displays of rage, contempt, arguments, disappointments, etc. These are signs of a serious issue that present an opportunity for an innovator to work on. An individual might assess whether there is a workable solution that they could perhaps address by noticing patterns around these pain points.

Example

An innovator might notice that people in their community often fight in crowded public bus during office time. A thorough analysis might uncover that the frequency at which public buses operate during peak office hours is not convenient for most commuters. This is a common occurrence for office workers, thus finding a solution to it would be beneficial. But it's also crucial to keep in mind that these commuters are choosing a public transportation option over an OLA or Uber service mostly due to the accompanying costs. Therefore, the innovator is aware that the solution must be affordable.

No matter how much we think of ourselves as critical thinkers, bias is something that most people have in common. An innovator should take into account the chance that she might make a mistake at the "Feel" stage. It's possible that the problem she believed she had identified is not actually a problem that needs to be solved. This brings us to the second stage, when we engage with potential clients or the target audience and record their reactions in order to verify the presumptions and better comprehend their difficulties, needs, and requirements.

Continued Example

The innovator working on the crowded bus problem might realize after the REACTION stage that most people are ready to pay a little extra to travel in comfort and with less annoyance. This will give the entrepreneur a little more conviction and direction.

One might be assured that the problem she is seeking to solve is genuine by the end of the second stage. However, that does not guarantee that the proposed method can be implemented widely. One needs to look beyond their immediate geographic area for this. This leads to the third stage, which is the use of social listening to keep an eye on internet forums and social media sites. Entrepreneurs can determine whether the problem they have identified has a larger (national level) audience by listening to what people are saying. Data analysis of all these social media sites, including Instagram reels, YouTube clips, Twitter tweets, and Facebook updates, can give us a pretty clear indication of whether such a solution is required across the nation.

Continued Example

The entrepreneur who validated the challenge of the crowded bus in the REACTION stage can look up videos of crowded Indian buses, crowded buses at rush hour, etc. Different lifestyle documentaries from all throughout the nation give a decent understanding of common difficulties.

To think that you are the only one who can recognise such a challenge would be naive. Others may have already begun working on this issue and may have made some progress. As a result, the fourth stage involves assessing competitors to determine whether they are resolving comparable issues and whether there are still unmet needs in the market. If it is discovered that the problem is not being solved or that no one is presently engaged in trying to find a solution, it would indicate two things:

1. The solution deployment might not be simple
2. The target audience is not ready to pay or do not have the capability to pay for the solution

Either of the two will require further research.

Continued Example

At this point, the entrepreneur may find that there are only a few people attempting to address the same problem but are having difficulty for a variety of reasons, such as choosing price points or obtaining regulatory approval. This helps her realise what she should concentrate on rather than beginning from scratch.

This is the last stage of the FRONT strategy. After going through the first four stages, one should be sure that the problem is real. It is also impacting a lot of people. There is a keen interest from other entrepreneurs – so the market is ready to pay for a solution. But a very important question still remains unanswered – is it a short-term market or long term? During the COVID era a lot of entrepreneurs jumped into the bandwagon of selling sanitizers and masks. But it proved out to be a short-term market. Short term markets should not be the primary focus of an entrepreneur. To avoid stepping into a short-term market, one should observe trends in industries. This can be done by reviewing industry reports, news articles, and publications, attending industry events, conferences and listening to experts from core and allied industries.

Continued Example

When conducting a trend study for the specific issue, if the entrepreneur discovers that most corporations may make working from home optional, she may need to make appropriate plans. This may imply that the problem won't be as significant in a few years to tackle.

An entrepreneur can learn significant insights about the most important issues and unmet wants in their target market by using the FRONT-loading approach. These insights can be applied to the development of goods or services that deal with these problems, adding value for customers and fostering business success. Success cannot be assured by merely knowing a successful model. Implementation is the crucial step. The method necessitates thorough research done with patience. Therefore, it is better to invest time early on to fully grasp the difficulty before creating the product than to struggle later on to find customers for a finished good.

You can check out my online course here.