872: Validate Before You Create: Stop Wasting Time on Offers That Don’t Sell

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2:19before you get too far in creating it. I'm Jenna Kutcher, your host of the Gold Digger podcast. I escaped the corporate world at the age of 23 with nothing more than a$300 camera from Craigslist and a dream. Now I'm running a seven-figure online business that feels even better than it looks, all from my house in small town Minnesota with my family. Here, we value time as our currency. We mix the woo and the work, and we are in the pursuit of building businesses that give us the freedom to live lives that we love. I've always loved turning big goals into reality, and I'm here to help you do the same.

2:57This isn't just a peek behind the curtain. Come along with me and my guests as we tear the whole curtain down. Every week we tackle practical, no-fluff marketing strategies and host honest discussions on what works and what doesn't. Join me and my expert guests for actionable insights to help you grow your dream business with confidence. Pull up a seat and get ready to be challenged, inspired, and empowered. This is the Gold Digger Podcast. Have you ever spent hours, or let's be honest, maybe even days or weeks building out an offer that you were sure people would love, only to launch it and be met with crickets?

3:35Well, I've been there. I've poured my heart into creating an offer, crafting a landing page, recording the content, setting up the funnel, all of it, and then barely a click, maybe a sale or two. And in those moments, it's not just discouraging. It literally makes you question everything. Was this a total waste of time? Like, did I miss something? Do I even know what my audience wants anymore? Here's what I've learned over the years. The problem isn't always the offer. Sometimes it's the timing. Sometimes it's the messaging. And sometimes it's that I didn't validate the idea before building it.

4:11The truth is 42 % of business and product failures happen because there was no market need. That's nearly half. And I don't know about you, but I don't want to spend my precious time and energy creating something that no one asked for. So in today's episode, I am walking you through a five-step process that I use to validate my ideas before I ever create. Whether it's a new course, a digital product, a freebie, a full-blown offer, these steps help me move forward with confidence and clarity. And if you've already launched something that flopped, stick around. I've got a bonus section in this episode just for you with ways to revive that offer instead of scrapping it all together.

4:49All right, without further ado, let's dig on in. Okay, what do you think? I think we should just literally dive into this five-step validation framework because here's what I think. I think that a lot of times the one thing that entrepreneurs are missing the most is a filter, like something to run our ideas through. And I'll speak for myself here. I love being a visionary. I love generating ideas. Like I could never be bored. I am sitting on top of a hundred ideas that I'm doing nothing with because I don't have the time or the bandwidth or the energy. But what often happens is we get excited about an idea and we start running.

5:29And there is a part in this five-step process that I think is going to transform your life in so many different ways. But what I want for you to consider is that you need to have a filter that you are running your new ideas through. So before you waste your time and your money and your energy, you know that, hey, people actually want this thing. People will actually give me money for this thing. This is going to be worthy of the investment I'm going to put into it. And so consider this your filter. This framework will be your filter for all future decisions that you're going to make about your brilliant ideas.

6:05Okay, let's dig in. So step number one is listen before you lead. Now I have learned that great offers don't just start with brainstorming because a lot of times our minds can run wild. Like I am someone with ADHD. My mind can go from idea to idea, like at the drop of a hat. But a lot of times great offers don't start with brainstorming. They start with listening. And what I think is so important about this is that if you start to pay attention, your audience, the people in your life, your community, your friends and family, they are always telling you what they want. And they're doing that, but a lot of times we do not slow down enough to actually hear it or to intentionally listen.

6:53When you pay attention to the questions people ask you, the comments people leave you, the struggles they might share with you either privately or in your DMs, that is where the gold is. A lot of times we are too close to our own genius. We don't even realize what it is that we're good at or what people want to learn from us. And so when we get quiet enough to actually listen, to pay attention, to ask questions back, you will start to understand the path that you should go on if you want to create an offer that people actually want from you. And so before I create anything new, which let's be honest, I haven't created a lot of brand new stuff or ran with a lot of new ideas in years.

7:38And it's because I asked myself, have people asked me for this? Like, is there a consistent pain point here? Is there a theme here? And do I feel competent to deliver exactly what it is that they're asking for? Because if nobody's talking about it, they are probably not ready to buy it. And one of the biggest disconnects I see happen with entrepreneurs is that they create a really awesome offer, right? Like they create something that really could change somebody's life or that is this amazing offer. But if people are unconscious about the fact that they need it or that it will benefit them or that they actually desire that end result, the path to get somebody to buy that offer is really challenging.

8:21And so if you've ever launched something, it might not even be that your offer stinks. It probably doesn't. It's probably a good offer, but there could be a disconnect in your audience even being aware that they need that offer. Years ago, I had this idea. So I was working with my virtual assistant at the time. Her name is Caitlin. I've talked about her a lot on this show. And we were just talking about different times in my entrepreneurial journey where I was able to scale or where there was a huge shift. One of the biggest shifts, the easiest shifts to really identify was when I finally hired my virtual assistant, Caitlin.

8:57So we were talking about like, what were my pain points? Like, why was I so hesitant to get help? What was scary to me about outsourcing? What was I afraid of in letting someone in? And she was a really great virtual assistant. And we had this idea where we're like, we should record a course about like how business owners can hire the first virtual assistant. And then Caitlin would teach the portion on like how virtual assistants can support the business owner. And I was like, this is genius, right? Because it was such a huge pain point for me, but I was so resistant to it. And so we were like outlining the course.

9:33We were so excited about it. And then I was like, you know what? Hold on. I know that this would change people's lives, but I know that I was also in a place where like I was not ready to hire somebody. Like it took me years to get to that point. So it's like, before we get too deep into this, Let's just make sure, like, let's validate this idea. And so I was like, I'm going to record a podcast episode on this topic. I'm going to do a blog post and I'm going to create a freebie. So I was kind of taking the guts of what we were planning for the offer. And I'm like, let me just like throw spaghetti at the wall, put this out into the world and see what happens.

10:06And we put it out into the world. And it was like, the response was so underwhelming. It was almost laughable. I still think that's a great idea and a great offer, just not for us. and the interest just wasn't there. And I am so thankful that we paused long enough to say, hold on, before we like produce this whole thing and create this whole thing and run too far, let's just make sure that people actually want this. And I think that intrinsically it is something that people would want, but they might not be ready yet. And that's what we were coming up against. And so just taking a minute to listen before I was leading off with this idea and this project saved me so much time and energy.

10:49And I was able to put that time and energy into offers that already existed that I knew people already wanted. And so what I want for you to consider is how can you listen? How can you ask questions? How can you pay better attention? Whether you set aside maybe 20 minutes and just do some data mining, whether it's in your own community or like-minded communities and look at what are the questions people are asking? Where are people getting stuck? What do people come to you for? Do a little like investigative research into your own world of your own genius and make sure that anything that you're considering creating is something that people want.

11:32Listening and adjusting based to your audience needs can increase your product market fit by up to 38 % according to Nielsen Consumer Insights. So if you want to increase your product market fit, which you do by almost 40%, take time to listen. I promise you that the amount of time that it'll take you to do this little bit of research, it's going to save you so much time and energy in the long run. So step number one is listen before you lead with an idea. This podcast is brought to you by Mercury, banking that helps entrepreneurs do more with their money. Okay. I remember in the early days of my entrepreneurship journey, clients would literally mail me checks and then I would have to drive all the way to the bank to deposit them.

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12:54Visit mercury.com to apply in minutes. Mercury is a financial technology company, not a bank. For important details, check the show notes. you know i only share stuff i'm genuinely obsessed with and so when i kept seeing bolan brand sheets all over instagram i was like okay are these actually worth the hype drew and i have been using their sheets and duvets for over a year now and honestly our bedroom feels like a completely different space the moment you touch these sheets you'll get it they're incredibly soft to start but they literally get softer every time you wash them they're made from 100 % organic cotton so they're super durable and they're breathable which is perfect for piling on cozy layers without turning into a furnace at 2 a.m.

13:38This is hands down the best bedding I've slept on and I'm so genuinely excited for you to try it. Start building your sanctuary of comfort this fall with Bowl & Branch. For a limited time get 20 % off your first set of sheets plus free shipping at bolandbranch.com slash gold digger. That's bolandbranch, B-O-L-L-A-N-D branch.com slash gold digger to save 20 % and unlock free shipping. Exclusions apply. Okay. Step number two is this. Ask first and then build second. And this is so important because most people flip-flop this. They build first and they ask second. Ask first, build second. So again, this is coming from a place of instead of making an assumption.

14:24I don't know if your mom said this, but my mom, shout out mom, you always said this. If you assume you make an ass out of you and me, don't assume you know what your audience wants. If you are in this place where you are just creating these assumptions, I would say hit the brakes and ask. You can ask your audience in so many different ways, whether you use Instagram story polls, if you have a newsletter, sending out a little survey in your newsletter, Facebook posts. If you're a part of Facebook communities, you can ask. We have an amazing community, our Gold Digger Podcast Insiders Group. There's tens of thousands of you who listen to the show every week in there.

15:00But I think asking questions like, which of these would help you more? Or what are you struggling with when it comes to X? Or what keeps you up at night when you're thinking about your topic? Now, these questions seem so generic, but what's so important about them is that they are very open-ended, which allows people to use their own language to describe their problems. Because another piece of a disconnect between your offer and your audience receiving your offer can be the language that you're using. Sometimes we are so deeply ingrained in our industry, in the world that we're in, that we use language that people don't even understand.

15:42I will never forget, I had this one teacher. He was a lovely person, but he taught chemistry. And for some reason, chemistry was really tricky for me. And I always just felt like he had no idea what it was like to not know any of this. Everything was just so natural and second nature to him that when he described it, it sounded like an oh, duh moment. But for me, it was like an oh, crap moment because I had no idea what he was talking about. And I think a lot of times entrepreneurs can do that unintentionally because to us, what is common sense to someone else is life-changing or earth-shattering.

16:17And so when you ask questions like, which of these would help you more? Or what are you struggling with when it comes to X? You get clarity, but beyond that, you get the exact language that people use. And that language is what helps you connect later when you're ready to write copy, when you're ready to promote it, when you're ready to explain and tell people about your offer. And so this step is so huge when it comes to validating your offer, but also just validating how your audience talks about their needs around that offer. Now, there are so many different ways where you can test out ideas.

16:54A few of my favorites include this. So let's say people give you some good responses and you're like, okay, here's a good example. This is a real life example. So before we had our children, my husband was in the health coaching business. And before he even created his business, I told him he had to start an email newsletter. Now, I've been talking about email lists for almost a decade. I know that you're probably tired of hearing about them, but they are the most important piece of your business. They are the asset that you own in your business. So before my husband had a website, had a business name, he started a newsletter.

17:27And initially his business concept was that he was going to create a business around at-home workouts, no equipment required for busy entrepreneurs. So he saw for me at that stage of my life, it was really challenging for me to get movement in. I was just sitting behind my computer all day, every day as an entrepreneur. And so he wanted to create these really easy at-home effective workouts. And so that was the business idea. But we use his email list to split test and we went between workouts and nutrition. Okay. And so the first freebie that he created was five at-home workouts, no equipment required.

18:04And it was like this really beautiful freebie. We hired somebody to illustrate it. Like we put, we put some money into this freebie. The second freebie that he created, and this is hilarious, was our weekly grocery shopping list, including our meal prep recipes. Guess what? The meal prep recipes and the nutrition side 10x the workouts. Like it crushed it. There is no comparison. And I am so thankful that we tested out these two differing ideas because then he was able to take his business in the direction that people actually wanted, which was more accountability, help, and support in the nutrition side of things.

18:44And so that is a perfect example of like figuring out, okay, here are your struggles. Now here are a couple of possible solutions. Let's test out which one feels like the best fit. And that doesn't mean that you can't pursue the other idea, but let's shelf that one for a little while until you validate and get results with the first one. And so when Drew went to launch his business, we ended up changing the copy around it, the brand around it, and the offers around it knowing, oh my gosh, the people have spoken. This is what they need more help with. You can also use Pinterest to split test ideas.

19:19Pinterest is an amazing place to split test different ideas, headlines, titles, all different kinds of things. And it's like a very low risk way. It takes you two seconds to make a pin in Canva and you can upload it and you can start seeing the data of like how many people are saving or clicking on it. What does that look like? So there are many different ways and spaces that you can split test different ideas before you get too far into wasting time and money and energy on something that people don't want or they don't know they want. And so you want to ask first and build second. Make sure that your message and your angle can connect with your audience and what they say they want and need before you get too far in creating it.

20:02Now, here's a stat for you on this. Companies that regularly collect audience feedback, see conversion rates increase by up to 30%. Conversion rates, meaning sales, people that actually convert from followers to purchasers. That's huge. And so make sure that in your process, in your planning, you are collecting feedback and you are actually hearing. So ask first, build second. Okay. Step number three is to pre-sell or to soft launch. This step has saved me way more than once. Pre-selling is when you offer something before it is fully built. So think of it as like a beta launch or a founding member version of something.

20:47This is huge and this is a brilliant thing to do, especially in today's market and climate, because you get to put something out there and watch how your audience responds. And this is different than the last step because you're making people put skin in the game. I have seen so many people where they'll put out like a little poll of like, hey, I'm thinking about creating this thing. Would you be interested? And they get tons of comments. People are like, yes, I'm interested. Yes, I'm interested. When they go to collect people's credit card information, suddenly people are not interested anymore.

21:20And so if you do a pre-sell or a soft launch, you are getting money in hand, so cash in hand to help you float through this idea, but you are also getting people who are putting skin in the game. Like those who pay, pay attention. Those are your people. So here's a story about this. So, so when I first got into the online course world, I decided I was going to do a beta launch. So first I brought in people to take my program for free if they offered to give me feedback. So that was like the first thing. So that was not necessarily cash in hand, but that was feedback and that was testimonial. So I said, I'm going to take, I don't even remember how many people it was.

21:59It was quite a few, I think a hundred people through this process. And all I want is you to commit to doing it and giving me feedback. Okay. Step two was I started to build out my bigger signature course and I took 25 clients and in their experience inside of my course, I did three one-on-one calls with each of them. Now, if you're doing the math, that was 75 calls. Never again, you can imagine. I never did an offer like that again, but I learned so much in that process. I learned and got to hear from my clients over and over and over again, where they were at, what they were struggling with, what their goal was, what questions they had.

22:41It totally helped me to deeply understand my ideal client and also make sure that I help lead them towards results. And so this was a method that was high ticket, high touch. It was a pre-sell before I decided to scale this offer at a lower price point and a lower touch, but it was amazing. And again, I wouldn't do it like that again, but if you are just starting out or you are trying to validate an offer or you are trying to figure out who is my ideal client, what are they actually struggling with? What can I actually help them with? Consider pre-selling or soft launching something. If people are willing to buy something before it's ready, that is a very clear sign that there is demand for it.

23:24Like that is like a green light move ahead. This is awesome. People are ready to go. Now, if nobody bites, that will also tell you something that can one, save you a ton of time and energy and going down the wrong path, but it will also allow you to shift your energy elsewhere before you spend all of that time building out this thing that nobody actually wants. Pre-selling can increase the success rate of a product by up to 60%. And I just think this is a really smart way, especially if you are going to build out something that is going to take a substantial amount of time, money, or energy, or all of the above, because then you are validating it before you build it.

24:04And it is a great way to one, pay attention. Who are these people that want this? And how can you find more of them? What is it that they're telling you? What are you learning in this process? And how can you over deliver so that when you go to launch it out to the masses or to the public or however you want to do that, you are going to have awesome testimonials. You're going to have incredible insight and you're going to be able to tailor that launch to all the things that you've learned in that pre-sale or that soft launching process. So that is step three, pre-sell or soft launch. If I were to create a brand new program, I would probably go this route right now just to make sure that there is enough demand that it feels worth it so that you don't go out and launch something and you're like, oh my gosh, I would have never done this if I would have known only 10 people needed it.

24:53And so this is an amazing, amazing way. So step three, pre-sell or soft launch. Okay. Step number four of five is start small before you scale. So start small. You do not need to create a massive offer or a giant course or a full program right out the gate. Whatever your offer is, you do not need to go to the moon and back before you get started. Sometimes starting small is the best way to test out if people actually want and like what it is that you're offering. So here's kind of an idea of what this could look like in real time in my own business. So for the last eight years, I have taught my program, the Pinterest lab.

25:38So this is my signature program. It teaches people my one hour a week process for using Pinterest to drive traffic. And I am obsessed with this program. It's probably like my favorite program to launch. It's just such an amazing underutilized marketing channel and I won't go too deep on it. So here's how this is looking in my business literally as we speak. Okay. So starting small before I scale. So for the last eight years, I've taught my signature program, the Pinterest lab. The Pinterest lab is like the complete one hour a week system to drive traffic using Pinterest. So if you're using Pinterest just for fun, awesome.