Have you tested a web service muse without building it first? How?

[SoftwareGeek]

Has anyone successfully tested a web service/SaaS muse?

I'm very much onboard with the idea of testing a muse before actually building/acquiring the product, to make sure the market exists and to be able to fine tune the marketing and sales process through rapid and cheap iterations. I certainly don't want to spend time/money building a product, only to find out no one wants it.

I think I understand how to test selling a physical product (or even an information product), by asking the visitor to purchase, and then politely rejecting their purchase. However, the trend in web services/SaaS is to allow customers to "try before you buy", which requires you to fully build the product before you can test it.

The only approach I can think of would be to build out the marketing website, including a few screenshots or videos based on quick but credible mockups, and then ask visitors to purchase based on the website/screenshots/videos. This could either be in the form of the final goal of a per month fee, or perhaps softened slightly by asking them to pay a "trial" fee of $10, say.

I'm hesitant to gauge interest based on something like collecting emails for a "closed beta" or something similar, as I'm concerned that it doesn't indicate a willingness to actually spend money, only curiosity.

Has anyone successfully tested a web service muse without writing code? If so, how, and what was your experience?

[dvdwlsh]

It's entirely simply to create and market software that hasn't actually been developed yet, and I'd strongly support anyone taking that approach. Developers usually get too enamored with the technology and just start building something.

In terms of monetizing, I'd start by forgetting a monthly/recurring payment model. Treat your software as an actual product and you'll find yourself with something far less cumbersome to manage. Once you sell a product, you either keep the sale or refund it - it's a sale, not a relationship. Unless you want to actually become a software company (ie: 37signals) which will consume your life, think about your software more like Microsoft Office or Adobe Photoshop. Although they offer trial versions, the actual product is a once-and-done sale.

In terms of testing before development, you nailed it -- mock it up and get the UI in shape, and gauge interest based on that. Don't write a line of code before you understand if your market is there. Give it a price and see who cares enough to try to buy a copy.

I'm actually doing this same thing now, though I've already gauged interest and moved into development a few months back. Launching the app soon, but doing so with absolute confidence in the desire/demand for it.

If you want to drop in some details or specifics on your muse/app, I'll get more detailed as well. Feel free to PM/email.

Cheers,
David

[Peter Bowen]

I couldn't figure out how to sell SaaS without a product so I built and released version 1 of my muse - the automatic credit control system (http://www.getting-paid-system.com) as a very simple service. It took about a week's worth of hard days and nights from idea to release. I then left the development alone (hard to resist adding new features) for about 5 months until it had enough customers to justify the next phase.

I figured a week's worth of work doing something enjoyable was a fair price to pay for testing an idea. It seemed to work and we recently released the third phase.

Cheers

Pete

[jon123]

Hey Peter... Love your idea there, hope all is going well. I saw a competing service to yours a few months back and thought it was interesting. I'm curious, how did you market to start out?

I have a SaaS muse I am currently testing but I feel like most businesses I want to reach are not going to be googling (or yahooing, binging, facebooking, etc.), so that leaves me with a few options to reach them:

Magazines (costly for testing)
Direct mail (somewhat costly, but much less so)
Door to door (time consuming, minimal reach)

I'm not entirely writing any of those off, just wanted to state things I've thought about regarding those marketing mediums.

Any other ideas or recommendations for any of those forms of marketing?

[Peter Bowen]

If they're not using the web to find stuff they might not be ready use the web to do stuff. You might want to consider this. It's something I've bumped into.

[jon123]

The service I'm seeking to provide is essentially web site development/hosting, so it's likely they are technologically deficient, but they would benefit (in some cases, greatly) from having a web site for customers to find them.

[maxpr]

How do you test an SaaS site if you have no web skills? In other words I would have a tough time setting up a mockup test site for results...I am also not sure if Adwords testing would be completely successful either, as what I have in mind would actually need some direct face-to-face marketing in the beginning.

Also, how would one test pricing options?

I am talking to a programmer this week about a project (that I think is good) but of course what I think is good might not be good enough! :)

[Peter Bowen]

How do you test an SaaS site if you have no web skills? In other words I would have a tough time setting up a mockup test site for results

Can I humbly suggest that you might be better off doing something where you do have skills. It means you're likely to get up to speed much faster than if you are still having to learn the beginners stuff your competition has already forgotten.

[FrozenCanuck]

SWGeek - just do this:

1) Create the mochup advertising stuff
2) Offer a signup for a free 30 day trial
3) Capture all info (not credit card) to make it seem like a real trial

Funnel the data into something like Aweber and follow up saying "Sorry the project is not yet complete, we will contact you when it is ready".

Make some assumptions on what your conversion rate will be from opt-in to actual monthly sale.

I agree, DO NOT build it until you know you have a market. Then, build it and give away 3 free months to everyone who opted in for the 30 day trial originally. That'll create some goodwill.

[maxpr]

Can I humbly suggest that you might be better off doing something where you do have skills. It means you're likely to get up to speed much faster than if you are still having to learn the beginners stuff your competition has already forgotten.

Well, I have worked with programmers before on more complex projects and it was not too hard or expensive...so, I do not want to let my basic internet knowledge stand in the way of a good idea.

Really, if I followed anything in Tim's book I would still need to set up a mockup site...but its now more of a question of me setting up a mockup where I am not selling a physical item but rather a service.

I have the seed money available and I want to do the idea but its all a question of what is the proper way for me to test it.

I do agree with your statement that it is typically not a good idea to get into things you do not fully understand but there have been those who have tread the path before me, so I try not to get too caught up in that. :)