Begin evaluating
every product development, product extension, product enhancement, and
product revision activity in terms of actual customer purchases those
activities will create. If you are developing new products without a
precise linkage into the purchase potential of the customer, why are you
wasting time, talent, energy and resources to develop something that you
aren’t even sure customers want? A product is only a product when many
people are lining up to buy it; until then it is only a risk. Every
activity in product development must begin and end with live customer
experience, input, and design assistance. You cannot even begin to think
about a new product until your customer base tells you what the product
is, how it is to be positioned, priced, packaged, and delivered.