The most optimistic success rate I have run across for new product ideas is about 3%. In other words, 97% of product ideas never successfully enter the market. There are lots of reasons for this low level of performance, but there is a consistency around a few common mistakes that routinely present themselves with inventors and new product marketers. These are not the only reasons, but if you can avoid these mistakes, you can greatly improve your chances for success.

The Product: The single biggest shortcoming in new product introductions is not fully understanding the product, its usage and the target market. A dead give away to this problem is when I ask inventors to define the target market and they tell me, "Everybody." If your target market is everybody, you are doomed to failure. It is like shooting a gun at a bull