There are so many elements to running a business. I always have an image in my head of a Founder or CEO and them running full pelt down a street spinning 20 plates – and at the same time having people throw things at them – including oil to see if they fall over. But that is just my crazy mind!
But being an Owner/Founder/CEO is all encompassing. And I know all about it! I started The Healthy Mummy in 2010 and without any loans or any debt built it to a $20m+ business (I went onto sell in in 2021) and I have now started a new business for pet health and nutrition called Healthy Active Pet
As anOwner/Founder/CEO, you have to constantly look at all elements of the business to ensure you keep driving it forward.
And if you let one area slip it can have a detrimental effect on the growth, the revenue and the profitability. Did someone say stressful?
But one of the areas that can be forgotten about in the midst of everything else going on is NEW products, new content and product development – and this is something that I have always believed in and always invest in.
I believe that in the current day and age we live in, is that new is the currency that consumers trade in – and if your business is not thinking about NEW then now is the time to rethink that strategy.
Consumers LOVE new. We all have a limited attention span nowadays. Life moves so fast and we all do seem to have an insatiable appetite for new.
Whether it is the new iphone, the new outfit, the new trainers, the new make up, the new food, the new wine, the new non alcoholic drink, the new place to go on holiday, the new influencer to follow, the new restaurant to visit, the new trend to try, the new song to listen, the new pet food to try (but seriously this new one here is the bees knees), the new car to buy and so on and so on….
And research from BrandSpark a few years back showed 75% of consumers like trying new products, and 70% say they will pay a little more for a new product. And 44% said they’re less brand loyal than they were a few years ago..
So if your brand or business is not delivering anything new then you are missing out on a crucial connection point with your consumer or potential consumer – and this then means they will be getting their ‘NEW’ fix from a different brand or business and you could lose them.
So let’s talk NEW – what does it mean and what can you do?
Firstly – when finances are stretched it is common to see many businesses put a halt on anything new.
Although this may seem like a good idea at the time – it is also very short term thinking as the future is coming and if you lose your engagement and customers in the short term then you won’t have them in the long term.
Plus if you don’t plan for ‘new’ products in the future – when the future arrives you won’t have anything new and exciting to sell – but your competitor just might.
My 4 tips for creating new content and products are;
- Look at your P&L. Then look at it again. If you need to cut back, then look at where you can make some tweaks so you still have funds for new content and products.
- Ask your customer for feedback – what is it they want to see? What is they need in their life? Find out their pain points. Make your product and content development plan be customer centric so you are developing what you know that want and need.
- Cash flow an issue? When you have nailed your product development plan, put each product on pre order before it comes into stock. Customers who have voted for this product development will often be happy to pre-order to guarantee they receive it as a VIP.
- Be relevant and create social content that informs and entertains them so they stick around for when you can launch new products to excite and delight them.
And finally – make your customer front and centre of all your decisions of what you do and let them be your guiding light in all new product development and content you create.
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Want to work with me – contact me on Rhian@rhianallen.com for brand consulting
