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The "Inside Out" Technique - Getting Started!

InLikeFlint

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For lack of a better name I refer to this method as the "Inside Out" technique.

I have noticed a lot of threads with a common theme: "Will my business be successful?", and I love reading these threads and seeing what types of things people on this forum are doing, but with this common theme comes a common response. Without further adieu here is my version of the "Inside Out" technique:

Steps:


  1. Choose an Industry (Engineering, Medical, Law, etc). Now choose a more specific profession under this market (For Medical: Dentist, Brain Surgeon, Anesthesiologist, etc)
  2. Research. Talk to people in that profession, read articles about it. The goal of the research is to account for all the complaints and all the problems in this field and then to find one that seems to be pretty common.
  3. Brainstorm. What could you create that would solve this problem? This could be a product, a service, or a website. Target the problem directly.
  4. Create. Make the product/service/website that will solve the problem of this profession. Design it around the pain in the profession. This is the sole purpose of your product/service/website.
  5. Market. Connect with people in your area that your product targets. Tell them about your product and how it will help them. If necessary let them have it for free, and in return you get results and feedback on how it works.
  6. Expand. Now that you have results and feedback from people who have used your product you can expand to other people within the profession in other towns, states, and countries. Pitch the idea with the results you got from the testers and explain how this would better their business. Focus on them, and how this is beneficial to them.

Here is an example of the "Inside Out" Technique in action:


  1. Industry: Doctor Profession: Dentist
  2. Research: I went to my Dentist and sat down with him for a talk. I asked him what the difficulties were in his profession, and what problems he was having. He expressed that one major issue he was having was getting patients to show up once every 6 months for a check up and teeth cleaning. 6 months is the recommended time between appointments and some clients weren't making appointments for a year or longer. I took this information and did some research online, I found lots of articles written by Dentists with the same problem.
  3. Brainstorming: I decided that the best solution to this problem would be to create a website that the Dentist can use to collect the cell phone number and email of clients that come in. From the contact information a text message and email can be sent out to the client X amount of days before the appointment and can be resent X amount of times until an appointment is made. This will make it easier for notifications to be seen through modern technology. Now-a-days people are more likely to notice a text message than a letter in the mail, and an email rather than a voicemail on a home phone. This doesn't ensure that all clients will make appointments, but I feel it will greatly increase the number that do.
  4. Create: I created the website that I described above, with the goal of the site to get clients to schedule and show up to appointments once every 6 months.
  5. Market: After creating the site, I went back to my Dentist. I explained to him what I had created and how it could better his company and increase his appointments. He was thrilled. I offered him a free trial of my website so long as he would keep track of his appointments and give me the result and any feedback or suggestions he might have, he agreed.
  6. Expand: The number of appointments greatly increased because of my website. I then decided to branch out to other Dentists in my area, and in towns nearby. I explained to them what my website did, and even pitched to them the results from my trial Dentist. They were intrigued, they signed up for my site, but they were no longer trials, they were customers. They realized it was a small price to pay to increase their business. From there I expanded to more towns outside of my own, and eventually states, and now countries. My website is now used world wide by thousands of dentists. I made a pretty penny from the business, and it provided a solution to a major problem Dentists were experiencing.

Why was this so successful?
It targeted a direct problem lots of Dentists were having, it wasn't just an idea I thought of to make money. It did more than one thing: Brought in more customers for dentists, made scheduling easier, made each cleaning easier and less time consuming, it made it easier for clients to be notified of their appointment, and it improved the health of teeth of thousands of people! Because this wasn't just me seeking wealth, it was able to take off.

Why choose this technique?
It will save you time trying to think of a new invention, you don't have to think of some revolutionary product with this technique. You simply need to do research and the problem will come to you, then it's up to you to find a solution for that specific problem. You know that your product will have demand, because it is solving a problem that people experience.

Will this really work?
I can't promise you results, but finding a problem rather than chasing the money will more likely than not give you a better chance of having success. Just look at MJ, he found a problem, and he became successful by finding a solution for that problem.

If you are using a product that is completely new to an industry, it is important to get a patent or some sort of legal document protecting your idea from being stolen. This should happen between steps 4 and 5, you don't want to market until your product is protected. **Credit goes to Alana for this piece of information**

**The scenario I gave above was completely made up, I have not made a website for Dentists. I used it solely as an example to express the concepts of the technique. Because this isn't a real situation, it'd be best if there wasn't criticism of the website or idea, considering they are not real**

**Credit goes out to thecalmpickle for helping me develop a lot of the ideas in this thread and giving me input on how to write it**

If you have any questions or comments feel free to ask, and I will do my best to answer them. I am writing this at 1:30AM and I have to be up and traveling in 4 hours so I am sure there are mistakes and things I forgot, I will try to add them in as I think of them.

I am hoping by making this thread people can realize how this technique can be utilized and everyone can have a fastlane business!

Cheers and best of luck to all of you,
Sam
 
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Epictetus

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You say, 'pick an industry, than a profession, than research for problems and search for the solution'.
So, you pick the dentist and you find a solution called problem X, that's nice. Serious, it is.

It's all about the problem solving, right? So why would you pick a niche so soon in your research? Couldn't you just ask a mom at a party what problems she has... and than the dentist when you have to go anyway, than the milkman..etcetera?
I am not sure why you would want to pick a profession before searching for a problem. Not sure what the value of that is.

When you use this technique you need to go all out on an industry. Picking the right industry is crucial. You need profit-motivated businesses. You need to pick businesses that are run like businesses (not hobbies). There needs to be enough of those businesses for it to be worth your time. You need to be able to get into contact with the people who are going to understand the business well enough to give you the information you need. If you're building software, it's a good thing to make sure they're an industry that already is used to paying for software. You don't want to pick a concentrated market, highly fragmented markets with lots of players are much better targets.

You also only want to speak to the top players in the industry. That way you're going to get the most painful problems, because if the people at the top haven't solved it then the people who aren't as successful sure as hell haven't.

By doing all this, you're making sure you don't get led down the garden path to building something nobody cares about or isn't really worth anything. If you go industry by industry, carefully picking each one and interviewing as many people in that market as you can, you're going to find success much quicker and it will be a lot less of a risk.

Not to say you can't extract an idea from a random person at a party, but by doing it this way you're maximising your chances of success.
 
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InLikeFlint

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Hey Guys!

I recently had another meeting with the Entrepreneur's Club at my school, and the topic for this particular meeting was what steps are essential for a startup.. I purposely kept my mouth shut the entire meeting so that I could observe what other people were thinking. To my surprise, no one said to find a solution to the problem. Examples included: find something to make money, make sure you have enough capital, market, and find partners. I was shocked that no one said to find a product or service that somebody needs.

It just goes to show how this technique is lacking in society, everyone is really geared towards making money and this "Tunnel Vision" doesn't include solving a problem.
 
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Epictetus

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This is the exact technique Dane Maxwell uses in The Foundation.

It does work very well, the difficulty comes in getting that idea from the customers. Talking to them and finding out what their problems are sounds easy on paper, but it's damn hard. You need to be able to dig and dig and dig and dig. You need to engage the customer on an emotional level. You need to be able to find an idea that solves one core problem that's extremely painful for them. You also only want to be speaking to the top players in the industry. There's a number of criteria you have to make sure that problem fits into, it's very easy to get excited about an idea and build something that isn't worth the money.

All that being said, if you nail it you can create a product worth a fortune. One of the past Foundation members has a product for property inspectors he sells for $500 a month per client. Dane's leading product serves well over a thousand real estate brokerages for around the $350 a month mark.
 
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MJ DeMarco

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Wow, almost missed this thread, thank you for posting.

Your technique is very Fastlane applicable as it is need-based ... need creates demand and demand creates sales, sales creates profit and profit creates millionaires. :)

Gonna social share.

I change the thread title for better visibility.
 

MJ DeMarco

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Bump, nice write up about idea extraction, solution-selling, inside-outing, or whatever you want to label it.

Found this doing some research in the archives.
 
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Jason K

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Excellent post by the OP, and well laid-out. Speed+.

Note the process here. It's very deliberate. No "Hey, Honey, guess what just flashed into my mind in the shower?" You can be sure whatever results from this will be a saleable solution. And if ONE decision maker in your niche tells you about a specific problem they're experiencing, you can be the rest of them feel it, too.

And getting reality from your market. Vital. Are they going to drop their defenses and just give it to you right off the bat? Probably not. You have to build rapport with them. Everyone's afraid of getting ripped off. You and me, too. So we lie a little. "Oh, everything's all right. I have it all under control." Right.

Sometimes we need to come at the situation from a different direction. "If I could wave a magic wand, and fix all the problems in your world Mr. Dentist, what would your day look like?" "Uh huh? And...what's it like now?" Oh-ho, the gap is revealed! Your solution bridges that gap...how.

This IS work. This DOES take time. And you will likely be rewarded, because who else is taking the time and doing the work to get this information?
 

Epictetus

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Hey guys, thought I'd give you all a quick update on how this idea has been working out for us in The Foundation :p.

So far there are at least 10 people with completed software and multiple customers. About 5 of those people have at least 15 customers. One of the guys is charging around $200 a month and has close to 20 customers.

There's also another 15 or so people who have presold their product to one or more customers.

This is just out of the people who have been paying to access the community. There's people killing it in the lite tier as well, one of whom had over 30 presales a couple of months ago.

Personally I've come up a bit short of that partly due to being stuffed around by my full-time job. However, things have taken a turn for the better in the last few weeks and I'm fairly confident I can get some presales and software under development in the next month.

So yeah, this technique definitely works. Most of the work associated with it is actually learning the techniques that help you get the best ideas from people. I've noticed that my conversations with people in day-to-day life are yielding ideas all the time, because I'm instinctively digging in when I hear people talking about a problem. That's invaluable.
 

million$$$smile

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Wow! Very concise! I took the liberty of copying and printing this out so that I could put in on the wall. Thanks for making a simple, concise plan to developing the the adage of "find a need and fill it"
Thank you, great post!
 
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One of the most quality posts I have seen on this site! I really appreciate the time and effort that you put into this thread Flint! The information is very helpful for new entrepreneurs, or seasoned veterans. This is a concept that will produce results! Great share!
 

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You say, 'pick an industry, than a profession, than research for problems and search for the solution'.
So, you pick the dentist and you find a solution called problem X, that's nice. Serious, it is.

It's all about the problem solving, right? So why would you pick a niche so soon in your research? Couldn't you just ask a mom at a party what problems she has... and than the dentist when you have to go anyway, than the milkman..etcetera?
I am not sure why you would want to pick a profession before searching for a problem. Not sure what the value of that is.
 

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Very good and concise directions @InLikeFlint! I jumped into the process a two weeks ago and am sharing my experience and lessons learned in this thread: https://www.thefastlaneforum.com/co...g-for-a-saas-business-idea.61823/#post-477994

Yesterday, I also shared a recording of the call I got two ideas from. You can view it either in the thread or over a Youtube.

(I am sharing it, because I'm hoping the video will get me a scholarship for The Foundation (Dane Maxwell). So, whether or not you grab the idea or profit from the recording, thanks for watching!)
 
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InLikeFlint

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Basically PRE-SELL the product before you even have it made.

Couldn't agree more. It's a true test of whether your product/service will stand on its own when you decide to actually bring it to market - If you are having trouble getting people interested in your product or service, go back to the drawing board. What you may find is that your solution is viable and that your method of communication is preventing your target market from truly understanding your concept. I run into this issue a lot especially with projects that delve into more complex industries or if the venture requires a lot of prior research - It makes sense when you think about it, but without that pre-existing knowledge, your customer is going to think you're speaking a completely different language!

@xabi it's important that you weigh both sides of your decision - coding is always a beneficial skill to possess, but is taking the time and effort necessary to learn coding worth more to you than dishing out the fee to outsource the work?

Have confidence in your idea and welcome competition. If you truly have a passion for this business and understand it inside and out then you will be able to out do any competitors that come in your way - Ideas are a dime a dozen, but the motivation and execution that allow you to move from the idea phase to the tangible phase, not everyone possesses those skills so use it to your advantage.
 

InLikeFlint

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You make it seem very practical. And I think IT IS.

I mean, it's a lot easier when you're so problem/customer-focused.

I agree, it is practical. If your only goal is to make money, what motivation do you have to listen to customers and hear what they have to say?
 

InLikeFlint

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This is the exact technique Dane Maxwell uses in The Foundation.

It does work very well, the difficulty comes in getting that idea from the customers. Talking to them and finding out what their problems are sounds easy on paper, but it's damn hard. You need to be able to dig and dig and dig and dig. You need to engage the customer on an emotional level. You need to be able to find an idea that solves one core problem that's extremely painful for them. You also only want to be speaking to the top players in the industry. There's a number of criteria you have to make sure that problem fits into, it's very easy to get excited about an idea and build something that isn't worth the money.

All that being said, if you nail it you can create a product worth a fortune. One of the past Foundation members has a product for property inspectors he sells for $500 a month per client. Dane's leading product serves well over a thousand real estate brokerages for around the $350 a month mark.

By no means do I think it's easy. This isn't a "Get rich scheme" it's a work hard and apply tips from this method and there is a good chance for you to be successful. I will have to read The Foundation when I get a chance!
 

InLikeFlint

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One of the most quality posts I have seen on this site! I really appreciate the time and effort that you put into this thread Flint! The information is very helpful for new entrepreneurs, or seasoned veterans. This is a concept that will produce results! Great share!

Thanks!! I am really glad you enjoyed it and hopefully it can help you in the future!

Cheers!
 
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Alana

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Thanks for sharing InLikeFlint! You're a stud!
I realize this is a general step-by-step process for a business. And because you mentioned in step #3 that a product was a possibility, can I ask your opinion on that specifically: a physical product? If someone was to create a never before accessory for toothbrushes (keeping it in the dentist theme), they, more or less, would sketch out the design, make rough prototypes with it, and if it requires, get a manufacturer to create the final product. I would think that between step #4 and step #5 one would want to protect the intellectual property with a patent before it’s shown to the manufacture and/or general public?
 

InLikeFlint

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Great information i'll definately dig into this :thumbsup:
One question though, did you first make a fixed decision on the industry and profession and then went on to talk to these dentists or did your decision on industry come from asking alot of people from various industries/professions about their painpoints?

I picked the industry first. However, I think you could do it the other way around too. It wasn't a random choice, I picked Doctor because I am really interested in the Medical field, and I was thinking about what possible problems could be within the medical field, and appointments came to mind, and from that I got Dentists because they have lots of appointments! (Orthodontists as well)
 

buggy

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Your "Inside Out Technique" is actually called Solution Selling and it's been around since 1975 (according to Wikipedia). But it's good to see a practical example of how to do it.
 

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Your "Inside Out Technique" is actually called Solution Selling and it's been around since 1975 (according to Wikipedia). But it's good to see a practical example of how to do it.

And all that's ''new'' becomes old again.

The foundation is just another example of bringing something forgotten into the world again.

More proof that there's no need to reinvent the wheel :thumbsup:
 

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I have had some success recently getting ideas from a few industries, my problem is that i cant code and don't really want to learn either. I have a general idea of how a piece of software / web page would work to solve the pains that these businesses have. what do I do next?.. goto upwork or odesk and hire someone to design and build it? How do I stop them running with the solution and selling it themselves? How do license it? Monthly fee? How can I prevent the customer copying the solution?
 
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tincho1492

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You make it seem very practical. And I think IT IS.

I mean, it's a lot easier when you're so problem/customer-focused.
 

InLikeFlint

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I would think that between step #4 and step #5 one would want to protect the intellectual property with a patent before it’s shown to the manufacture and/or general public?

Great point Alana. I would agree, this is very important especially if the product is unheard of, I will add that into the OP and credit you for the catch!
 
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twicE

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Great information i'll definately dig into this :thumbsup:
One question though, did you first make a fixed decision on the industry and profession and then went on to talk to these dentists or did your decision on industry come from asking alot of people from various industries/professions about their painpoints?
 

InLikeFlint

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I hope that response is useful to you twicE, I wrote it right as I woke up so I was somewhat groggy, if you have further questions or clarification just say so!
 
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D

DeletedUser13

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This seems really useful, I will do some brainstorming with it now! Also good point about money chasing vs finding the need (much more lean / agile attitude).

Thanks!
 

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