Do you have a great idea for a product? Are you thinking of launching a new product or service in the market place? Below is the first part of 12 questions you definitely want to answer and prepare for before you "go live".

1) Who is the target market?

You'd be surprised how many folks create a product before targeting a specific market. Targeting a market is the first step. If you do it the other way around, you just might find that a market for your product or service may not even exist.

2) What is the product/service?

Define it. Does it fall under a category? Is it a single product or a multiple line of products? A single product can be "one size fits all" if practical. WD-40 is a perfect example of a single product with multiple uses. When the WD-40 company first started out, they only had that one product. Today, they have multiple brands.

You can also create different flavors of your product. Think of shampoo. There's one for every hair type. The benefit of having a multiple product line, of course, is that you can expand your market reach.

3) Does it satisfy a market need?

Does your product or service actually solve a problem? If you did your market research correctly, then it should at least solve a problem to a certain degree. If the problem may continue to exist after your product launch, and the need is urgent, you might consider releasing your product as a temporary solution. However, you should continue to refine it until it completely solves the problem.

4) Will your product or service maintain market appeal?

"Here today. Gone tomorrow." So goes the saying. Think for the long term when it comes to your product. You'll ultimately reap huge rewards while other products around you fade away.

5) Is your product or service useful?

No, really. Is it? Don't get beside yourself when answering this question. There are many products out there that folks can't justify spending one dime for. Other folks, for some reason, see those same products and they just have to have it. Either way, useful products and services are the ones that last.

6) How much competition exists?

You do not want to join a flooded market, but there might be a reason why NOBODY is pushing a product or service like yours.

***In part 2, I give you six more questions you should ask yourself before going live with your product launch.