Four Simple Reasons Your Product Is Not Selling

You've done your homework. You've looked into the best ways to market your small business' new product and present it to your customers. You've spent hours coming up with a strategy for how to set yourself and your product apart from what your competitors have to offer. So, where are the new customers, and why aren't your sales through the roof? Sometimes it can be hard to take a step back and see the larger picture, especially after having been so focused on the minor details for so long. Here are four simple reasons your product might not be going over well with consumers:
1. Your Audience Doesn't Care
Even if your market research, marketing, advertising and promotion techniques have all been spot on, there is one vital flaw that will prevent any small business from striking it rich with its new product: your audience simply doesn't care. Maybe you're trying to sell them something they don't need. Maybe you're attempting to convince them to move away from a product they are comfortable purchasing, or from a brand they already trust. Maybe the thing you are proposing they buy is too radical, uncertain, or not practical for their daily life. Whatever the case may be, before you spend your time and money investing in presenting a new product to the public, make sure they are going to want it in the first place.
2. You're Targeting the Wrong Audience Altogether
If you're sure that someone out there really, truly will want your product - but you are still hitting a wall when it comes to actually selling it - there could be another problem at work: you are promoting yourself to the wrong people. Although all the resources out there that provide advice to small business owners claim that there are general, blanket rules for the marketing strategies small business owners should practice, not every small business is the same. Make sure that the places you choose to place your ads are places your audience will actually see. Furthermore, make sure you aren't missing out entirely on other potential marketing locations where your audience can actually be found.
3. You're Trying too Hard
Sometimes, heavy advertising campaigns intended to reign customers in to buying a new product can work to have the opposite effect: they can turn your customers off from your product as well as your brand. Why is this? It's one of the fundamental rules of life: instead of trying hard to convince someone they need you, sometimes it's best to sit back and let people come to their own conclusions that you have something to offer them. Don't try too hard to persuade your customers that your product would be of use to them. If it really is that useful, just trust that their own word of mouth will help spread your reputation and bring in more money for your business.
4. You Aren't Using Marketing Tools Effectively
Maybe you've set out to implement a social media marketing campaign to show off your new product. Maybe you've chosen to stick with billboard or magazine advertisements. Maybe you've bought into the QR Code craze, and have stuck your business' code on fliers and posters everywhere. Whatever the case may be, remember that there are proper ways to use these marketing techniques, and there are ways to use them incorrectly. Make sure your artwork is well done, your spelling and grammar is correct, and there is nothing offensive or otherwise odd about your ad copy. If you're using Facebook and Twitter, don't overuse them; focus more on writing quality posts that are informative and fun. Your customers are already inundated with ads during their day to day; make sure your ad is something that will make them smile, or at least make them think.   "Enjoy Your Coffee"  

Michael Stanley