Want to KNOW your product will be a hit BEFORE you make it? This is simple and easy to do. And it can save you a ton of time and frustration. Validating your next product idea is crucial if you want to be sure you’re going to have a winning product on your hands.

Here’s how to do it…

Create a pre-launch page.

On the pre-launch page, give a short summary of your up and coming product. This is like a mini sales page with a headline, bullet points, benefits and a call to action. In this case, the call to action is a waiting list to buy the product when it comes out.

Once they join this list, send them to a second page that again talks about the product, but also offers them the chance to buy it right now at a lower price.

Structure it with your offer at the top. “Buy your copy now and get $20 off, plus this extra bonus.” Then reiterate the benefits of the product, and make the offer again at the bottom. Some people will likely click the buy button at the top without ever scrolling. Others will want to review what’s in the product before they buy.

Send the offer to your list. Gauge your response. Obviously, if you get no or very few takers, refund anyone who did order and move on to your next project. If you get a lot of people joining the waiting list and quite a few pre-ordering, you have a hit on your hands.

If the response rate is somewhere in between then you’ll have to make a judgement call. In this case, you might want to survey people who did join your list to see what they like about it, and survey those who didn’t join to see what they don’t like. Then make adjustments.

That’s it! By using this simple system you can accurately forecast whether you should go ahead and create that product you’ve got in mind, or move on to another, better project.

It’s tempting to send offer after offer to your list in the hopes of making the most money. Yet this is also a sure fire way to alienate your readers and send them packing. If all you ever do is pitch them in every email, they’re either going to stop opening your emails, or simply unsubscribe. In either case, you are no longer relevant to your list. So when it comes time to promote your own products, no one will be listening.

There is a better way, and it’s to provide content along with the promotions. The problem is in knowing what kind of content to give them. What do they want to know? How long is it going to take you to research it and write it? And will it even be read?

The key is to think ‘engagement’ over selling. If you can continually engage your audience, then you can continually sell to them as well, at a reasonable pace.

Think of it this way: Every engagement email is like building your goodwill account. Every promotional email is like cashing in on that account. Both are equally important.

Here are 4 reasons to send engagement type emails:

1. They take the pressure off of you and let you have fun with your list. Let’s face it – if every email you send is trying to convince people to buy yet another product, you’re putting a lot of pressure on yourself to continually SELL SELL SELL. And you know in your heart of hearts that your list does NOT want another email telling them to BUY BUY BUY. Which means you are having NO FUN writing nothing but promotional emails. Who can blame you?

Even a born sales person likes to take some time off and just shoot the breeze, talk about sports, do some gardening, whatever. Well, you and your list need time off as well. And we don’t mean time when they don’t hear from you, but instead time when you have something to say that doesn’t involve them reaching for their wallets yet again.

2. You can be their go-to person in your niche. If all you do is sell, then they always have their guard up when they open your emails – and with good reason. But if you can show them how to do things without buying, and even how to buy better, you can become the authority they like and trust.

3. You can email more often. If you only send promotional emails, you better either keep the frequency down or expect to burn your list. But if you’re sending engagement type emails, you don’t have to worry about how often you email (within reason.) Who doesn’t want to hear the latest news or tips or tricks in their favorite niche? Send it out, they WANT to read this stuff.

A funny thing happens when you send out engagement type emails and then you take a few days off – your list will write to you asking where you are and if you’re okay. When this happens, you know you’ve created magic.

4. You can cheat. Big time. What I mean by this is you can reuse material you’ve already written. Did you write a dynamite blog post earlier this year that got rave reviews? Break it up into several emails and send it out. Do you have a report on how to do something that is full of great tips? Break it up into several emails and send it out.

You don’t always have to come up with new material for engagement emails – you can reuse stuff from your articles and posts. Nice!

Here are 10 topics you can write about besides the usual ‘buy this’ stuff:

1. The latest news in your niche AND how it might affect your readers. Don’t just give the news – personalize it with your own take and your thoughts on how it might impact your list.

2. Tips, tricks and great ideas on how to do things in your niche. Everyone wants the latest hack on how to do something easier/faster/cheaper/better. So let them in on the secrets.

3. Teach your list how to be a savvy shopper in your niche. What should they look out for? What features are must-have, and what should they avoid? This is a great way to make yourself into the authority.

4. 3 minute interviews. Send email interviews to authorities in your niche and create emails from those interviews. These don’t need to be long – 1 to 5 questions is all you need.

5. Spotlight your customers. Show how Bill bought your product and used it with good results. Talk about the obstacles he had to overcome, the problems he solved, and anything else that might interest your readers.

6. Show your list how to USE your product. If they’ve purchased, this is helpful. If they haven’t, they get to feel what it would be like if they did purchase. Either way, it’s a win-win.

7. Stuff for your list only. Give your list benefits that people can get nowhere else. This might be free products, insider information or special discounts. Make these special benefits expire to train your list to open your emails as soon as they receive them.

8. Stories. People LOVE stories. Don’t get wordy, do start in the middle of the story where the action is, and always make it entertaining as well as relevant to your niche.

9. Seasonal tips. If you’re in a niche that changes with the seasons, this is perfect. For example, if your niche is sports then fall is the time to talk about the upcoming ski season, while spring is when you can talk about baseball, soccer, etc. Is your niche cooking? Talk about seasonal foods. Even if your niche isn’t seasonal, with a little creativity you can still use this angle.

10. Personality and humor. You don’t want to ramble on about yourself or your business, but injecting your own personality is terrific and highly recommended. And anytime you can make your readers smile or even laugh, you’re sure to get them to open your next email.

What not to talk about in your emails:

– Too much personal info. A line or two about yourself is fine, but unless you’re telling a story that is of particular interest to your readers, don’t overdo it. No one wants to know your life history, at least not in a broadcast email.

– How terrible your competition is. There is an exception to this rule: If one of your customers has a personal story of their experience with your competition, you can use it. But YOU cannot trash your competition. Even if every word you say is true, it still makes you look like a jerk.

By sending out engagement emails, you won’t burn your list, you’ll build rapport with your list, and in the end you wind up selling more than if you simply sent promotional emails. Plus your list will actually LIKE you and say nice things about you in social media, which is always a plus.

Guaranteed, you’ve been on the customer side of this equation. You buy a product and you think you’re going to be directed to the download page. Instead, you find yourself on an upsell page trying to sell you another product.

No problem, you scroll to the bottom and click the ‘no thanks’ link, thinking you’re about to get to the download page.

No such luck. You’re on another upsell page. You scroll down and click ‘no thanks’ again, and you’re taken to…

… yet another upsell page. Now you’re getting irritated. You scroll down, click the ‘no thanks’ button, and you’re finally taken to…

… another upsell page! @#$%&

You’re no longer just irritated, you’re annoyed, mad and even downright ANGRY. Odds are you are talking to your computer and what you’re saying is not very nice.

Who can blame you?

Now then, let’s look at this from the marketer’s standpoint: The more offers you as the marketer can make, the more money you will make.

Today, that is.

But when you make your customers angry, what happens? They remember how you made them feel. In fact, they will remember how you made them feel long, long after they’ve forgotten your product. And the next time you try to sell them something, they’ll decide they’re going to stay far away from your offers because they do NOT want to get caught in upsell hell ever again.

So what’s the solution? Offer ONE upsell. Just one. Then take your buyers straight to the download page.

On the download page, you can offer them another product with a nice discount. You’re not holding their purchase hostage at this point because they’re able to download it. So they’re not going to resent you for making them another offer, especially if they get it at a reduced price.

Then in your autoresponder sequence, you can offer them all the upsells, down sells and cross sells you like interspersed with helpful info, news and so forth.

The bottom line comes down to this: If you want to be a flash in the pan and make all of your money today, use a ton of upsells. No one will buy from you again, but it won’t matter because you’ll be living on the beach somewhere carving coconuts.

But if you want to build a long term business, then respect your customers and never, ever put them through upsell hell again.

Stuck for ideas on what to write in your next blog post, article or email? I’ve made a list of what readers want most to see from you. In fact, this is exactly the content that people crave, so get ready to make your next content a smash hit with your audience.

Your readers want content that:

– Reminds them that they matter
– Reminds them that they are one of a kind
– Tells a story
– Takes them on a journey
– Surprises them
– Shows them that dreams can come true
– Has unexpected twists and unforeseeable turns
– Reveals awesome secrets
– Shows little Davids beating big Goliaths
– Confirms their thoughts and beliefs
– Challenges their assumptions in a respectful manner
– Gives a fresh point of view
– Takes a stand
– Reminds them that life is short – really short
– Gives them faith to believe in something BIG
– Reminds them to get back to the “basics”
– Makes them smile and laugh
– Makes them cry
– Educates while entertaining
– Inspires them to take action
– Encourages them to never, ever give up

This is the sort of content your readers never get tired of and always have time to read. If it’s really good, they remember it long after they’ve read it. And even if it’s only somewhat good, if it meets any of the above criteria, they are very likely to share it with others.

In other words, this is the kind of content that has the power to inspire, influence and move your readers to ACTION.

The fact is, most people have an expertise that would make a good product others would happily pay for. But some people either don’t feel confident enough to charge for what they know, or they really don’t know enough to charge.

So what kind of product can these folks create? That’s easy – software.

With software, you don’t have to record videos and write PDF’s and give case studies and examples and so forth, other than what you need to sell the software.

All you need to create a software product is basically two things: A good idea and a coder. Coders are easy to come by – just go to any of the freelancing sites and take your pick.

So how do you get a good idea for software? Study your market. See what people need. Make a note when you wish you had software that would do ____, because odds are other people are wishing for the same thing.

Look at the new software introduced in your niche – how could you improve it?

What are the latest, biggest, fastest growing trends? What software can you make to piggyback on these trends?

The fact is, new ideas for software are everywhere if you’re looking for them.

And software generally has a higher perceived value than information. This means you can either charge more than an information product, or keep your price low and get more buyers.

Either way, you’re making sales and building a list of buyers.

All you need now is an idea and the guts to see that idea through.

Which one would you remember: “Pete and Earl’s Hair Salon for Men,” or “Best Head Salon?” How about “The Best Irrigation Installation and Repair” or “Dirty Boots Irrigation?”

Choosing a memorable name for your business, service or product can actually increase your business, for 3 reasons:

– People can remember it in conversation with others. “Check out the “Stealth Remodeler,” he does work during off-hours so he won’t bother your customers.

– People remember it each time they see it. They might forget a generic name and not realize they’ve seen it over and over again online in forums, on blogs and so forth. But a memorable name they will remember. “Hey, I see that product or service everywhere, it must be good!”

– People can remember it when they need your product or service. “I’ve got to get a new window, so I’ll call the one window place I remember: ‘Peek-a-boo Windows.’” Or, “I need help with my website SEO, I’ll Google ‘Naked SEO’ because I remember their name from an article I read.”

Everything else being equal, the catchy, memorable name will win the business.

This is so basic, a lot of people might dismiss this without another thought. However if they do, they’ll be missing out on one of the single greatest secrets to continuously increase their income month in and month out, for the rest of their lives…

Here’s how it works: Look at what you earned last month. Whatever it is, write it down.

Now set a goal to earn a certain percentage more this month. 5% works well. For example, if last month you earned $500, this month your goal is $525.

Now track what you earn every day. That’s right – every DAY. If you’re not on target to beat last month’s total, then do something. Send out another promotion. Create a viral report. Do another guest post. Whatever it takes, make sure you reach your new goal. Odds are you will not only reach it, you will exceed it.

Now rinse and repeat month in and month out.

“But this is too hard!” You might be thinking. Nope. It’s not. You’re taking 2 minutes a day to record how much you earned the day before. You’re keeping track of whether or not you’re on target. And you’re pushing yourself to do a little bit better each month.

The alternative is to flounder around like a dying fish, hoping you somehow land back in the water. Odds are most months you’re not going to. A year passes, and you’re making the same amount of money each month as you are now – or maybe you’re making less. Not pretty.

But increase your income just 5% each month, starting with just a current income of $500 a month, and it can look like this:

12 month mark $900 a month
18 month mark $1,200 a month
24 month mark $1,600 a month

What if you’re currently earning $1,000 a month, and you increase your goal by 10% each month?

12 month mark $3,100 a month
18 month mark $5,500 a month
24 month mark $9,700 a month

Now do you see the power of setting goals and continually tracking your results? Two minutes a day can produce riches. Or, you could spend those two minutes watching a cat video on YouTube. Your choice.

Are there really any good reasons NOT to launch your amazing new product? Take this quiz to find out so you don’t make the same critical mistakes that have destroyed many other businesses and entrepreneurs from the word GO…

Ok, check all that apply:

1. __ Another marketer has just launched a product very similar to yours, and if you launch your product now, you’ll look like a copycat.

2. __ You just got word that another launch for a similar product bombed in a very big way – almost no one bought it. You’ll look like an idiot if you launch your product.

3. __ A big guru in your niche just started the launch process of a very similar product. His first video is out, and once he releases the fourth video everyone on the planet will be promoting his product.

4. __ There are already several free versions of products quite similar to yours – thus there is no reason anyone would buy your product when they can get the same info for free.

Did you pick which scenarios should stop you from launching your product right now?

Okay, let’s see how you did.

Answers:

1. This happens more often than you think. And yes, product creators do pull their product launch when they see someone else has just launched something similar. And you know what? Those product creators are fools. Here’s a true story to illustrate why:

Recently a popular marketer was just about to launch a product he’d worked on for a long time. He had everything in place to launch – all he had to do was press the button to send out the first email.

But someone else launched a VERY similar product that was selling like gangbusters. So he decided not to launch. Which made him sad. So late that night, when he was feeling down, he said, “Screw it!” and hit the launch button. $61,000 in profits later, he was very, VERY happy he had launched his look alike product.

Do not worry about what others are selling. If you’ve done your research into what your customers want, you WILL make sales. And sometimes you’ll make those sales to the exact same people who bought your competitor’s product, too! Don’t wait, don’t hesitate – launch your product.

2. If their product didn’t sell, yours won’t either, right? Wrong. You’ve done your research and you know what your customers want. Your customers trust you. They like you. They buy your stuff.

So of course you’re going to launch your product, because whatever that other marketer did or did not have going on does not affect you. And neither do rumors, so don’t pay any attention to them. Stop second guessing yourself and launch your product.

3. Oh no, you can’t compete with the “big cheese,” can you? Who says you have to? Your customers are YOUR customers. Your affiliates are YOUR affiliates. It’s common for similar products to hit the market at nearly the same time and have both do well. So don’t worry about it. Just launch your product.

Have you noticed a pattern yet? I hope so. Okay, onto the last one…

4. What is the perceived value of “free?” Low. Very low. In fact, no free product can compete with your paid product, because as everyone believes, they get what they pay for. That’s why free is never your competition. So launch your product. Now.

In fact the only real competition you ever have is in your mind. So don’t worry about who is launching what or when they are launching. In fact, stop reading your emails when you’re in product creation mode and just focus on your task – creating the content and products your customers want. Everything else will take care of itself.

Let’s say you write and sell a fairly successful monthly newsletter. How can you get your subscribers to bring you new subscribers? Or maybe you have a growing membership. How do you get your current members to bring you more paying members? The answer might be as simple as giving your existing members certificates to GIVE to their friends…

In the case of the newsletter, let your subscribers give away 1-6 months for free. Limit the number of gift subscriptions they can give away to keep the perceived value high. Make the gift certificates look like they were paid for by your current subscribers, so that when they give them out, it appears they’re giving a valuable gift (which they are.) This also makes it more likely your subscribers will give the certificates out because there is a sense of pride in the giving of the gift.

When the gift recipients sign up to get their free subscriptions, you can offer them the chance to subscribe for a longer period of time at a reduced rate. Some will accept your offer, others won’t. Those who opt only for the free subscription will receive your offers to renew before their subscription ends. If you’ve provided a great value to them, some will subscribe. And when they do, you can then offer them certificates to give to their friends as well.

Remember, since your newsletter is delivered electronically, it costs almost nothing to give out gift subscriptions. And even if your newsletter is printed and mailed, the cost is still low compared to the number of new subscribers you are likely to get using this simple method. Of course, you’ll want to track your numbers to be sure it’s profitable.

Memberships can work the same way. Let your current members give away limited-time memberships to a small handful of the people they think will appreciate it the most.

You might even do special promotions using this method. For example, you give out certificates in late April for Mother’s Day with instructions to give them to moms who would enjoy the subscription or membership. Or prior to Christmas as gifts, and so forth.

If your membership or newsletter delivers a high value, using your current customers to bring in more customers can be the easiest, fastest and most cost effective way to get a continuous stream of new, happy customers into your business.

Therefore, instead of only thinking about how many of your paid newsletter subscriptions or memberships you can sell, start directing your creative juices to finding ways you can leverage your existing subscriber and customer base’s enthusiasm for your services to start GIVING AWAY everything you have to offer. As you do this, your business and influence can start growing exponentially, and with less overall effort and advertising investment on your part.

Let’s say you have a product for brick and mortar businesses on how to get more customers. If you take the exact same information that is in your product, but customize it for a specific niche, you can charge more AND make more sales.

For example, you customize the info for chiropractors and market it exclusively to chiropractors. Sales will actually be easier to make for a couple of reasons.

First, it’s easier to reach your audience when you are being specific. Second, chiropractors will see the info is just for them, and be far more likely to buy than if it was generic. So it’s easier to reach your audience, and easier to sell to them when you find them.

But perhaps the biggest benefit of all is that you can sell your product for more money because it is geared specifically towards chiropractors. And you can do this in multiple niches: Contractors, lawyers, accountants, dentists, etc.

Let’s use another niche – weight loss. You have a generic product on how to lose weight, which means you are competing against every other weight loss product out there. But if you focus your product just for men over 60, or just for college women, or just for people in cold climates who can’t get outside to exercise, you’ve created more opportunities to target and sell your information. And you can continue to customize your info as many times as you can find markets. If you can reach your specific audience, you can do this.

This could be a business all on its own. You can go to any product owner and strike a deal where you take their info and customize it and then sell it. If you do, be sure you negotiate for a high percentage of the profits, since you will be doing the customizing and the work.

Or better yet, simply buy rights to the information and then you can keep all the profits for yourself.