How to Sell Bleeding Edge Technology

Wednesday, 05. 27. 2009  –  Category: T2 Communications

As the technology landscape rapidly evolves, new gadgets and applications seem to hit the market on a weekly basis.  Rumors continue to swirl about the next big products coming in the handset world from the likes of Apple, Research in Motion and Palm.  Google is consistently poised to introduce a new application into their portfolio.  Even companies like Amazon that are not traditionally into building unique products are getting into the action in an attempt to expand their market reach.

The reality, however, is that not every great piece of technology becomes the next “big thing” and perfectly good ideas never make a dime in the marketplace.  Many ideas never show up on news feeds or the shelves of the local big box retailer.  Some detrimentally alter the competitive landscape and have been known to bankrupt companies.  So how do you keep your product from a tragic end and put it on the path to success?  The key is in how well the presentation meshes with the product itself.

Everything Is Compared to the Past

When a new product is nearing launch, it is easy to get lost in the pomp that comes with the release.  The attention is often focused on the “game changing” aspects of the product.  However, when consumers get past the flashy advertisements, and before they reach for their credit card, they are going to ask a lot of hard questions.  These hard questions can quickly drain your resources and momentum if you are not ready to tackle them.  In particular, they will want to know how the product blends into their current experience and what the inevitable trade offs are going to be—and every product has its trade offs.

Don’t fall for easy option of just pushing the new aspects of your product.  Understand how your product stacks up against the current landscape and proactively pitch it with the appropriate comparisons.  By doing so, you can introduce your product without having to spend your energy explaining the entire marketplace to each consumer.

Building a New Experience

The product is only one part of the equation.  There has to be a compelling reason to entice potential customers to make the switch.  For some products, that reason is price.  When it comes to technology, however, more often that not price pales in comparison to expanded capacity, increased efficiently or improved experience.  At the end of the day, if the new experience produces more headaches than the current one, customers will continue their existing activities.

Apple does a brilliant job of creating the experience with each product it releases.  Not only do they offer iPods and iPhones, but they created platforms for each to expand and simplify the experience.  iTunes, Apps Store and their retail locations all add value to their product and created a platform for shared experience.

Making a Good First (and Possibly Only) Impression

Like it or not, in an environment as rapidly evolving as technology you only get one chance to launch your product.  While some companies make second and third attempts, very few if any products can survive a lack of momentum.  With the social media platforms available, a bad product launch one day could be a YouTube sensation the next–and not in a good way.

Sometimes, the best first impression is a soft one.  Unless you have the dollars to invest in product development, market research and advertising, a soft (or beta) launch is the best route to take.  Many online applications have been able to turn heads and pull in capital by testing their product out with a pool of early adopters.  It is an easy and cost effective way to build up your product’s quality while not killing its reputation at the same time.

David Fleming is the Director of Corporate Communications for CornerWorld.

Tags: Apple, article, bleeding edge, branding, David Fleming, Google, marketing, momentum, next-generation, Palm, sales, strategy, technology