This is the story Joe Sugarman tells....

He was talking to the head of a publicly listed catalog company, who told him about this crushing experience....

They had a very successful product, a set of pots and pans which sold for only $19.95. This set sold very well, often in millions of units. But the executive was embarassed over the quality of the pots and pans....

The pots and pans were incredibly thin, and probably warped after only a few months of use, then they had to be thrown out. But they sold year after year after year....

Then he discovered he could create strong copper-bottom pots and pans, which he could sell for $69.95, which were very close in quality to brand-name high-end pots and pans being sold for $269.95....

To offer this kind of value, though, he had to order a HUGE number.... over a million sets! But he was convinced that the consumers would buy it, due to the incredible value they were offering....

But when they offered them in the catalog.... their offer bombed. It took them several years to get rid of their inventory. During this time, the $19.95 cheap pots and pans were still selling like crazy....

Joe Sugarman then says that this executive had fallen for the biggest fallacy in marketing, which is.... It is NEVER the marketer which dictates what is the best product for the market place, but the public. They'll tell you with their hard-earned cash what the best product is, no matter what YOU may think it is.

And you can't second-guess them.... You have to do some tests and see....

I believe you should try to do your best to make sure everything is WIN/WIN/WIN.... But remember that the public is boss, and they determine what they want, you don't!

Great book.... Can't wait to read the rest of it.... :)

Dien Rice