I began my entrepreneurial journey in 2014 with a SaaS product aimed at schools. It was digital report cards that had multiple features. As a student, you could track your progress and as a parent, you had access to every test score easily.
Back then, I had nil experience, zero confidence, and absolutely no trust in my product. I didn’t know the ABCs of marketing so I used to walk into every school and try to get an appointment. The one thing I was good at was communication- so it helped me get my foot in the door.
And soon I landed a meeting with a chairman of a famous school. I was excited and ready to meet him. I thought I had a chance to sign a contract with the school.
So, I got ready, wore my best dress, and set out to meet him. After waiting for a few hours; I walked into a big room where the chairman was seated. He was a friendly person. He shook my hands and apologized for the delay. He asked me to explain my product and sat back as I handed over our brochures and began showing the presentation I prepared.
After listening to me patiently for 20 minutes; he asked me the most important question.
“Can you please show me your market research data?”
I had no data. I did talk to a few parents- 10 or 20 parents and a handful of teachers. They liked my idea but I didn’t record any of my findings or have any concurrent data to support my claim that my product will help the students.
I simply assumed that my product will magically be used by everyone. I had no data to back it up. I forgot to document everything. I had NO data only assumptions.
The chairman smiled. He was kind enough not to embarrass me but told me that he was not interested. It took me a few years to understand what he said but I had to shut down my business.
In the world of business, defining your target audience is the single most important business decision you have to make as an entrepreneur. And if you don’t, it is just like hitting the arrow in the dark- you might not land where you want. And having the right market research and data is the first step towards it.
Now, after 6 years of understanding what he said, I cannot stress the importance of doing complete market research to understand your market, your audience, their challenges, and what they need.
Start small, offer free trial versions, take feedback, improvise, keep updating your product till you meet the standards of your customers. Do not forget to document your process. Keep track of everything so that when you want to go big- you can!
