August 26, 2008 

This weeks hits:  If you like food, please check out www.chezus.com  Denise is an authority on all things food.  Her site is full of great information and fantastic photos that will make your mouth water!  Just look at the Grill Charms pics!!!  http://www.chezus.com/?p=557 

Here is another good hit:  http://www.simple-finds.com/2008/08/is-there-dad-that-doesnt-like-to-grill.html 

When bringing a new product to market, I have to say, one of the biggest challenges isn’t how complicated it is to get a patent, or finding a manufacturer, or packaging design or any of the hundreds of other tasks that are required when going from light bulb moment to store shelves.  I am learning that the most challenging task is simply product awareness.  I spend more time on that one task then I do on any other aspect of my business.  It is my job 24/7 to #1 inform the public that my product exists and #2 educate them on how to use it.  One of the biggest advantages of inventing a new product is that you have the only thing out there that does what it does, how it does it.  The biggest disadvantage to inventing a new product is that you have the only thing out there that does what it does, how it does it.  Although you are at an advantage because you or the only one selling your widget, it is an uphill battle to let people know that your product is even on the shelves.  Two of the main ways to get the word out are through PR and advertising.  Because my product is so new and I think there are some good stories in my story, I’m focusing on the PR avenue (which is evident from my “news” page).  Different companies do well with both forms of awareness for different reasons and it’s up to you to figure out what works for your company and your product.  I am convinced however, that the first year of your company, you do a WHOLE LOT of telling from the mountain tops with not as much reward or sales as you might expect.  Raising product awareness is a slow process and takes a lot of your time.  There are very few golden tickets out there.  Maybe Oprah, but that’s about it.  PR and or adverting are things you must spend time and money doing and are worth it in the end if done right, but don’t expect immediate results to come from 1 or 2 mentions in newspapers, magazines or even TV.  It is well know that it takes somewhere between 5 and 7 times for a new or potential customer to be exposed to your product before they are ready to buy.  So as you can see, patience is the name of the game.   

In conjunction with formal PR and advertising, every minute of every day you should be at the ready to give your pitch, sell your product and make that person sitting next to you on the airplane, or the new mom in play group or the new neighbor not just a new customer, but a new FAN.  I always carry with me AT LEAST a card at all times and normally a brochures and samples too.  Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing worse then someone who can’t stop talking about themselves or their company, BUT you need to be ready when the opportunity arises.  As much as I want to tell everyone that walks my way about my great product and how wonderful it is, and why they must go out and buy it immediately, that approach would leave me with very few supporters, just about no friends and a family that would probably disown me.  So what is the balance?  Here’s a little tip on how to talk about your company in a social or networking situation without coming across as pushy or boastful.   Inevitably, just about everyone you meet or get to know will eventually want to know what you do with your time.  The words “so what do you do?” are uttered thousands of times a day all across this great land of ours.   I’m not sure why we feel the need to ask this, but we do.  Maybe it’s just something we are conditioned to say or maybe we all genuinely want to know what others do for a living, but for whatever reason, you will be asked hundreds if not thousands of times in your lifetime… “So what do you do?”  What a FANTASTIC opportunity those 5 little words are!!    Now as you know, people often just say this to be polite or to make conversation and don’t care what you do, it’s just something to say say.  This is where it’s good to offer a “teaser”.  In my case I say in a very nonchalant way, “Oh, I invented a grilling gadget”.  Now at this point, even if at first they didn’t really want to know what I do and were just being polite, with a statement like that, 90% of the people I say that too ask me to tell them more.  “Oh??? What kind of grilling gadget?”  and at this point, the curiosity has gotten to them and they are genueily interested to hear and are listening to what I am saying.  I’m sure you can come up with a clever, interesting comment or statement about what you do or what your company does that will leave people wanting more.  This is a wonderful way to turn just about any conversation into you getting to inform and educate people about your product or service without acting like you forced the information on them.  THEY asked YOU.  

Leslie Haywood, Founder and President of Charmed Life Products, Inventor of Grill Charms™  www.grillcharms.com