Are you looking for new product ideas for your business? Have you asked your customers?
First rule of product ideas: The people in field doing the work always come up with the best ideas.
Your customers have ideas. Are you asking for them?
Lisle Corporation (Clarinda, Iowa, population 5,500) makes, among other things, automotive specialty tools. You know, the funny hand tools mechanics use for all sorts of little jobs. The kind of thing nobody makes a tool for, so mechanics modify their own tool or they make something themselves. Things like brake spring pliers, battery terminal clamp spreaders, or magnets on long telescoping handles to retrieve those bolts that always seem to mysteriously fall into unreachable locations.
Where do they get their ideas? They are always asking their customers. This photo is from the back of one of their product packages. Bonus points to Lisle for showing off a successful mechanic who sent them a tool idea and earned some money for it.
Notice that Lisle talks through the process. By talking about royalties, protecting the mechanic’s idea, and the process to follow, they make it a little less intimidating.
Are you asking your customers for ideas? Do you pay up for the good ideas?
- Survey of Rural Challenges 2019 results - December 5, 2019
- Shop Indie Local adds a new twist to tired Buy Local campaigns - November 11, 2019
- Better entrepreneur training for small towns - November 4, 2019
- Culture is the intersection of people and place - August 19, 2019
- For easier social media marketing, fill in the blank - August 5, 2019
- Need a downtown business idea? Try a Cookie Crawl - July 22, 2019
- Need funding for the next step in your business? - July 17, 2019
- Youth business idea: phone clinics - July 8, 2019
- Chain link is everywhere in downtowns. Here’s how to dress it up. - June 30, 2019
- Stop using “3 legged stool” to describe any idea - June 24, 2019
