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Making any product revenue from a side project is a huge accomplishment, so congrats! I still remember that first dollar ;) One question: why not kill or sell

Making any product revenue from a side project is a huge accomplishment, so congrats! I still remember that first dollar ;) One question: why not kill or sell all your side projects except the one making money? Splitting focus between consulting and a product business is hard enough, let alone multiple product businesses.

abalashov 8y ago
Well, without knowing whether the products are somehow complementary or derivatives of the same thing, it's very hard for us to make that call. But instinctively, I agree. Churning out one product as a side project is hard enough; to really execute well, one cannot split focus among multiple products.
- jaamidor 8y ago
  This is a great discussion. The initial article is good too. I have been consulting on my own for about 3 years - though the first was more during a transition out of full time employment. A couple thoughts on what HAS worked for me: -I have been very focused on a specific and limited scope, product/market strategy for smart building/real estate tech firms (mostly startups who do not have their on product mgmt resources). I know folks who have been much more broad in focus and it doesn't seem to work. If you find a good gap in the market, you may find a consistent stream of work with enough flexibility on timelines to balance the days/weeks out so it's not so lumpy. -much of the marketing I do (free newsletter, articles in trade journals) do generate leads but it takes ~6 months for a particular article or effort to generate leads. I'm not sure why this is, but most people who reach out to me for help cite something from months ago as "how they heard about me" -pricing is difficult and the best response I have is that once you get a couple projects that are similar, you can use that average price as your list price - and you will have some confidence that it's a fair price based on the market. Also, I have thought the easiest move into a product, for me, would be syndicated research. Instead of charging clients for consulting engagements, could I write reports that are of interest and then sell them. A few firms in my space do this, and I think it would be the most organic product I could deploy. I've been brainstorming ways to test this, as I don't really want to spend a long time writing a long report only to find that it does not sell...

abalashov 8y ago

Well, without knowing whether the products are somehow complementary or derivatives of the same thing, it's very hard for us to make that call. But instinctively, I agree. Churning out one product as a side project is hard enough; to really execute well, one cannot split focus among multiple products.

jaamidor 8y ago
This is a great discussion. The initial article is good too. I have been consulting on my own for about 3 years - though the first was more during a transition out of full time employment. A couple thoughts on what HAS worked for me: -I have been very focused on a specific and limited scope, product/market strategy for smart building/real estate tech firms (mostly startups who do not have their on product mgmt resources). I know folks who have been much more broad in focus and it doesn't seem to work. If you find a good gap in the market, you may find a consistent stream of work with enough flexibility on timelines to balance the days/weeks out so it's not so lumpy. -much of the marketing I do (free newsletter, articles in trade journals) do generate leads but it takes ~6 months for a particular article or effort to generate leads. I'm not sure why this is, but most people who reach out to me for help cite something from months ago as "how they heard about me" -pricing is difficult and the best response I have is that once you get a couple projects that are similar, you can use that average price as your list price - and you will have some confidence that it's a fair price based on the market. Also, I have thought the easiest move into a product, for me, would be syndicated research. Instead of charging clients for consulting engagements, could I write reports that are of interest and then sell them. A few firms in my space do this, and I think it would be the most organic product I could deploy. I've been brainstorming ways to test this, as I don't really want to spend a long time writing a long report only to find that it does not sell...