How To Create A TON Of Products
Getting an email from this guy is the highlight of my month.
Even when it’s a harsh, but loving critique of my writing.
But in general, I don’t hear from my mentor, Mark Ford, that often.
Recently, he surprised me with a product creation tip that he sent out of the blue. It described his cube method. I’m going to share that with you today and it will help you generate a LOT of ideas.
It’s a great Big Thinking task for you.
Mark Ford explained it like this:
“Imagine a cube.
“It has three dimensions and six sides. And a product development plan should have three categories: type of product, subject matter and price.
“The product types for information products are fairly universal: special reports, books, newsletters, magazines, teaching programs, webinars, seminars, etc.”
“Subject matter varies according to the business. In the investment advisory business you might have precious metals, stocks, bonds, collectibles, options, etc.”
“Or you can subdivide the categories: stocks include growth stocks, income stocks, penny stocks, etc.”
“Or you can divide by investment perspective: technical analysis, fundamental analysis, macroeconomic analysis, etc. Or if you have them you can divide by gurus.”
“By pricing I mean the prices that one would normally expect to pay for a certain type of product about a certain subject matter.”
“For example, you could seek a report on Warren Buffet’s approach to stock investing for $10 to maybe $30. You could sell a book about that for $20 to $40. You could sell a newsletter based on that for $50 to $100. You could sell a program on it (like the Legacy Portfolio) for $200 to $500. You could sell a seminar on it for $1,000 to $5,000.”
“So what you do is develop for each subject matter a grid that breaks it into product types and subject matters…you start with six subject matters and fill out the cube accordingly…or you can start with six product types and do the same…”
“Prices are always dependent on subject matter and product type as I’ve said…. By using this little device you can generate literally hundreds of product ideas in a single afternoon”
“Now some of them may be absurd…but many of them will be solid and you will get a surprising number of ideas that surprise you…ideas you might never have thought of….such as a one-day seminar on Warren Buffet investing for $5,000…If you guys did this you could easily make a quarter million dollars in one day…pay someone $25,000 and be done with it…this is just an example.”
***
Thanks Mark, great exercise.
Take Marks advice and cube your business today.
Create a TON of products that help you leave an incredible legacy.
This is worth your time,
Craig Ballantyne
“Leaders who see their role as serving others leave the best legacies. Legacies are the result of determined action over a significant period of time. Every choice you make, whether at work, at home, or in your community, will be a part of the legacy you leave.” – Karen Christensen