Frito Lay still makes Fritos — but if you’ve stepped into a convenience store in the last few years, you’ll notice that they’ve been doing a lot more.
The shelves are bursting with new snack varieties from a company that’s been in business since the early 1930s. There’s a reason they’ve been around that long. They know how to adapt. They haven’t just been selling the same old chips this whole time.
They know what new products can do for a company.
New products can inject new life, generate excitement, make inroads into new markets. If your business needs a little push to go to the next level, something new might do the trick. Here’s why it can help you scale your business.
Reason 1: You’ll Boost Sales With Loyal, Existing Customers
How successful do you think the iPad would have been without an iPhone paving the way?
Tablets aren’t a new concept. They’ve been around for a couple of decades. Apple’s approach and design may have helped the iPad catch on, but they had a built-in benefit: a captive audience. Apple’s fanbase was the thing that propelled them.
The iPhone already had people lining up to buy it; the iPod had been a massive hit. Apple focused on selling the people that were already interested. It wasn’t hard to sell somebody on an iPad if they already had an iPod.
People buy from you for a reason. The product might be different, but if it matches the style and quality you’re already known for, you can piggyback off the credibility of other products you’ve released.
Reminder, it is imperative to have a great quality manufacturer in order to have loyal existing customers.
Reason 2: You’ll Expand Your Reach, Making Gains With New Prospective Buyers
Before the Wii, gaming was a niche pastime. Not everyone was excited about the idea of using a controller to steer characters through platforms or shoot down hordes of enemies. Nintendo’s console changed an industry.
The Wii Remote was immediately intuitive for non-gamers, and the library of unique video games the Remote enabled made the Wii instantly popular with people who would probably never have bought another video game console.
Nintendo was already a successful company. It was known for quality games and solid hardware. The Wii didn’t iterate on the market that already loved what it had to offer — it opened an entirely new market.
It became Nintendo’s best-selling console in history. That new product brought millions of new prospective buyers into a niche that they might never have explored, and they never looked back.
Don’t be afraid to have innovative products and work with any manufacturers to customize your product.
Reason 3: You’ll Increase Your Authority, Addressing the Pain Points of an Expanding Base
Want to build authority in your field?
Be useful.
Open any tradesman’s truck toolbox and you’ll probably find a reciprocating saw. Ask him what he calls it. Odds are the answer is “Sawzall” — no matter what the name on the saw actually is.
Milwaukee Tool created the first portable reciprocating hacksaw and called it the Sawzall. Their new product caught on instantly with the trades. The variety of blades, the power and the ability to get into and out of spaces a traditional hacksaw couldn’t reach made it a must-have tool.
It addressed the pain points of a base that was crying out for something that did what the Sawzall could. And to this day, despite all efforts to dethrone it, the name “Sawzall” still holds the same authority — and so does Milwaukee.
Reason 4: You’ll Cater to Adjacent Products for Your Current Product (and Possibly Increase Your AOV)
LEGO Group is the most successful toy company in the world. As of 2020, it was worth over $7.5 billion dollars. One of the most successful ideas LEGO had was to create sets that were aimed at adults.
Walk into any LEGO store and you won’t just see kids toys with ninja themes. You’ll see architectural marvels like the Coliseum, Darth Vader helmets designed to go on a desk or in a display, and other sets for older people.
LEGO realized that parents and hobbyists were just as interested in their product as their kids were — and they created new products to satisfy that demand, increasing their AOV. The companies in these examples used three methods to create new products that changed their trajectory.
Method 1: Identify (Or Create, If You Can) Products That Solve Real, Pressing Problems
The Sawzall is a great example of a product that solved a real, pressing problem. It became indispensable. You know your industry. Listen to your customers. Browse forums and social media. Put boots on the ground and talk to people where they live. Find out what their pain points are and give them something that fixes them …
You’ll be surprised how much demand you might find.
Method 2: Cater to Niche, Underserved (and Incredibly Passionate) Markets
LEGO for adults was a tiny niche, but an incredibly passionate one. Once LEGO leaned into their fanbase and began encouraging it, a small niche became a booming market. Their new products caught on because the fanbase was thirsting for them.
Passionate markets are your early adopters, your evangelists. If you can capture them, you’ll lay the groundwork for much greater success. Those people are worth ten regular customers.
Method 3: Look for Soon-to-Be Booming Trends; Take to Them Early
Apple’s iPhone literally set the market for smartphones. They realized that the smartphone was going to become a reality sooner or later, and they jumped on it early. They weren’t first — companies like RIM had been creating “smartphone” devices for a while — but they were at the crest of the wave.
A successful company uses these three methods to judge the market, figure out what new product will take off and offer it. Is your company offering the same old stale products that you’ve always had? Don’t languish in obscurity.
Spend some time following these methods and create something new, something your customer base can get excited about. We’re here to help — contact us today to find out how you can get started.
If you need a private label manufacturer or something custom, Manufactured can always assist you!
- Image Credit:
Featured Image, Pexels
