How to identify what people really want to buy

NOTE: this process is for founders who want to create or refine a new innovation. If you are looking to make money copying something that already exists (like selling coffee mugs on Amazon, or launching a fitness course), skip to the next section.

When you ask people what they want, they can only answer as far as their current experiences. The common example here is Henry Ford’s famous quote “if I asked people what they wanted, they’d say faster horses.”

As an industry professional, you know how to build a solution that is perfect for the people in your target market, a solution they may not know how to explain because they lack the knowledge and experience to create it.

This survey will give us the information we need to get people excited to pay for your new innovation.

Take Action: Create the greatest survey of your young startup’s life

Below is a screenshot of Molo9™’s first survey. It was made for FREE using Google Forms.

If you need help coming up with questions, here are a few great lists to browse through for inspiration

Question #1 = Qualifier

Your survey should start with a qualifying question.

The image above shows an example of a qualifying question. A qualifying question immediately tells you if the person answering this survey is a potential customer.

In my experience, founders who do not understand the crucial role marketing plays in growing a company don’t value something like Molo9™. It is a waste of time and money to try to teach such founders this vital lesson. Life has to teach it to them the hardware. So if they do not choose answer two or three in this question, I delete their entire survey.

I will not waste time reading the survey & will not follow up with the person who filled it in. They are not in my target market.

What are a few other examples of qualifying questions that you could ask?

If you are launching a health-app, product or course, you could ask something like “How frequently do you exercise?”, or “Do you believe that a healthy diet and exercise are both needed to maintain good physical health?”
If you are launching your own real estate company, you could ask “Do you believe that the right broker is key to making an extra 10% on the sale of your next home?”

Your goal with question #1 is to:

Indicate to the viewer what the survey is about.
Indicate to you and your team if you should read or delete the filled in survey.

Question #2 = PAIN Point

The second question in your survey should prompt the individual to share his or her current pain points. Because people pay more to fix pain points than anything else, you should use the answers people provide here in your marketing and advertising.

You want to ask “What is the hardest part about ________” to identify a pain point that is so frustrating the person will be eager to BUY your solution.

Here is an example:

Question #3 = Frequency

The third question in your survey should prompt the individual to share how often they face the problem that your startup will fix.

Here is how to use their answer:

If they encounter the problem frequently highlight their survey. This is your ideal customer.
If they do not, send them a lead magnet, invite them to join your email list and then move on.

Here is an easy way to phrase this question:

Question #4 = Dig into the pain point

Yes, you want both “pain point questions” included, because this also helps the individual to sell themselves on whatever solution you are about to offer.

Questions #5 & #6 = The solutions that failed

If someone else created an ineffective solution, you want to learn from their mistakes, not repeat them.

Use the answers here to refine your startup idea & learn how to communicate your startup’s key differentiators.

If you have a competitor, you can ask why your competitors offering is not working for them.

Make following up with survey respondents easy

If someone took the time to fill in that entire survey they either are in love with you or really want whatever you’re about to start selling.

So make it easy to follow up with them. I intentionally place these questions at the end because after answering the questions above, an individual tends to be more excited by the prospect of your solution helping them & therefore more eager to answer these honestly.

Notice how I slip one final qualifying question in there “What is your role?”

This helps me to quickly identify and prioritize reaching out to the decision makers.

Sharing your survey

Embed your survey into a page on your company’s website (this will increase the session time on your website, which will improve your search engine rankings).
Share the link to the survey on your social media profiles, with your mailing list & in the Molo9™ Facebook group.

If you need help coming up with questions, here are a few great lists to browse through for inspiration

Hey [usermeta field=”first_name”],

Are you getting all of the emails that you wanted? You can edit them here at anytime: