One of primary traits that separate those who consistently innovate from everyone else is the innovator’s habit of constantly asking questions. While everyone else worries about appearing dumb or being too forward, innovators question every assumption.

Don’t Let Fear of Looking Stupid Stop You From Asking Important Questions

Questioning is how insights are gained and new paths reveal themselves. Begin by asking “what is the current situation?” and “why?”, and move on to asking “what if?”

All great solutions began with asking the right questions.
– The Startup Daily

Beware of “One More Thing”

There will always be features that are not quite ready for the first version of your product. You have to draw a line in the sand and get something out there and into the hands of your users. The sooner you draw that line the better.

If You’re Not Embarrassed When You ship Your First Version, You Waited Too Long

Usage is like oxygen for ideas. The truth is that you don’t know if that essential feature is really essential until you.

It’s better to have your customers clamor for a feature than to waste time and money developing a feature they will not use.
– The Startup Daily

Your customers don’t expect you to be perfect. In fact, if your offering appears too good to be true then their guard will be up. The best way to minimize your flaws is to be the one to point them out.
– The Startup Daily

Calling Attention to the Flaws in Your Offering Will Increase Your Customer’s Trust in You

People are far more likely to buy from people they trust.

If the customers doesn’t find your flaws on their own, you can be sure your competition will point them out. What you don’t want to happen is for the customer to find a flaw that you should have mentioned, but didn’t.

Never begin a presentation by talking about yourself, your company, or your product, no matter how great you think it is. A presentation should not be used as a platform to show people how brilliant you are. Your audience will have a hard time connecting to anything else you say if they perceive you as being self-centered.

Your Audience is the Hero

They are the ones doing all the hard work, so place them at the center of the action. Your role as a presenter is to be a mentor. Offer guidance, insights, and encouragement to help them become successful.
– The Startup Daily

We are all limited by the amount of time we have to invest in our projects. There may be significant gains to be had by being strategic in how we invest that time.

Lists are often used to prioritize projects, but lists encourage items to be prioritized by deadlines. Long-term investments find their way to the bottom of the list, replaced by less significant tasks that have more immediate due dates.

Prioritize Time Investments Based on the Size of the Potential Returns, not the Order You will See those Returns In
– The Startup Daily

There are forces at work that cause brands to self-destruct. They take the form of low-hanging fruit—albeit outside of your area of focus—that have the potential for immediate and easy profits. But this low-hanging fruit may be poisoned.

Opportunities that will Confuse Your Brand’s Position in the Market Should be Ignored

In the short-term there may be profits to be taken in this misaligned area. But in the long-term, your brand’s position will become diluted. Consumers will become confused about what you stand for, and they will move to a competitor that is more focused on the position you used to own.

A brand is a unique position in the mind of the consumer. The hardest part of branding is staying focused on that position.
– The Startup Daily

October 7, 2011Volume #201
There are features in every product or service that are held sacred. Over time the market becomes so focused on competing on these features that they may not realize that customers values have changed.

As Customer’s Values Change Over Time, So Do the Features they Consider Essential

Some features that were once taken for granted will become less important or even completely unnecessary, while others become more important.

When you eliminate or reduce something that your competition considers essential, you change your cost structure and free up resources that can be used to elevate another feature and further differentiate your offering.
– The Startup Daily

Some people will never be satisfied. Steer clear of customers that have overly demanding needs and drain your energy. When resources are limited a single high-maintenance customer can handicap your entire business.

You Don’t Have to Take Every Customer that Wants to Do Business with You

If you don’t enjoy working with someone, it’s hard to provide them with good service. So let them burn through someone else’s resources trying to get their insatiable needs met.
– The Startup Daily

One of the most effective sales techniques is to lead with the problem that your product solves.

Define the problem simply and clearly first. Then go back and further agitate that problem. Make your customer relive the problem at it’s worst. Point out aspects of the problem the customer hadn’t even considered.

People are More Likely to Act to Avoid Pain than to Get Gain

Only after the customer has been reminded just how bad their problem is should you unveil your solution. Demonstrate how your product makes all those headaches go away and offers additional benefits.
– The Startup Daily

Most products try to do too much, and because of this they do nothing well. Designers add features in an effort to stand out, but those features clutter the user experience.

Elegant design is not about adding the right features, it is about leaving the right things out.

Say No to Everything that Does Not Contribute to the Essential Experience of the Product

Steve Jobs has famously said that he is most of proud of the things he hasn’t done. Only by saying no to the distractions can you concentrate your resources on getting the essentials right.
– The Startup Daily