It sounds promising (in theory). The issue is that this is analogous to pushing a massive rock uphill. Trying to force a product on a market that hasn’t asked for it can be a long, drawn-out process – one that can, of course, be successful. When computers first appeared on the market, the world had no idea they were needed. But, let’s be honest. Such cases are extremely rare.

There is another model that many companies are using successfully, but you may not be aware of it. It’s known as creating a “customer-centric” business.

 customer-centric business includes the following typical steps:

• Determine what a market requires.
• Create a product that meets that need (or adjust your own product to better fit that need)
• Create a genuine connection with your “audience”
• Discover what they truly require.
• Sell products/services that they have requested.
• Continue to provide far more value than you “take.”
• Give a small group of people a high-quality education.
• Delight those individuals while also expanding your platform (website/blog, YouTube channel, email list, podcast subscribers).

How do you determine what your target audience requires?

Market research can be as costly and in-depth as your budget allows. There are numerous companies that provide detailed niche analysis, surveying, numbers, and statistics. This is where corporations invest on a regular basis.

The good news is that the Internet provides numerous opportunities to conduct in-house research on your target niche for free or on a limited budget.

Any small business can now be customer-centric thanks to the Internet. Here are a few suggestions:

On-site analytics

On-site analytics is a popular method for website owners to assess their traffic, its sources, and entry pages. However, it is also a great way to better understand your target audience. Google Analytics provides detailed demographic information, ranging from gender and age to the location of your customers (like popular cities people tend to access your site from).

Surveying your current (or potential) customers

Asking your customers what they need from your product or service, which features they like best, and which are not set up in the most useful way is a great way to align your business with the needs of your target audience.

When polling your customers, remember to:

• Remember that there will always be people who dislike everything.
• Negative feedback should not be used to discourage you. Remember that it is the journey, not the destination, that is important.
• Do not rush to implement changes or add features: Take your time collecting feedback; there will almost certainly be conflicting comments: Some people will adore the features that others despise.
• Don’t just look at the numbers: Make sure there is a place for your customers or readers to leave their own comments. Some of those suggestions will prove invaluable and will inspire you to make future plans.

You can use Google Forms to create the survey and distribute it to your customers and/or site visitors (which are free). There are also many surveying plugins that allow you to embed your surveys on your website.

You can also send out a newsletter to your customers inviting them to assist you.

You will also be able to identify your most active and loyal customers as a result of this: Make a segment for those you want to reach out to more, give them special offers, and turn them into brand advocates.

It’s also a good idea to time your newsletters so that they’re more engaging and produce better results.

Semantic research

Semantic research is one of the best ways to quickly understand underlying concepts and entities when you are new to a niche. The best tool for the job is Text Optimizer. Run the name of an established competitor through the tool to learn what your future customers associate that brand with:

Keyword research

Traditional SEO-driven keyword research provides a solid understanding of what people are struggling with, as well as the demand (i.e. search volume) for a specific feature or problem solution.

Marketers can use the SE Ranking keyword research tool to broaden their search queries, find related queries, and assess keyword difficulty and search volume. You can also group your keywords and create mindmaps from them to better understand your target topic.

As with Text Optimizer, consider using your competitor’s product name as a keyword in market research to better understand what their customers are searching for:

Why should you consider starting an audience-based business?

 Here’s why you might want to consider it:

• It will be difficult at first, but if you persevere, you will have a loyal audience and a solid platform.
• It beats chasing transactional sales if your product ideas come from the audience rather than your imagination. You make sales on the basis of relationships.
• You own the platform; you don’t need to constantly “borrow” other people’s audiences.