Sometimes you can build a marketable product but still get it wrong...

While working as a consultant, "John" helped develop management software for one company that looked to be general enough for wide use.  He bought all rights to the software and started off on his own.

A friend started selling the product on commission.  John and friend found that there was a market for the product.  After three months John called his friend and told him to stop selling - he was having trouble supporting the product.   Soon after, the effort was abandoned.

The problem here was that the product needed a great deal of support and maintenance and customers would not buy it without customization.  John lacked experience in how to ensure success.  John could have avoided failure by considering:

Are there high-end customers willing to pay enough to justify lots of customization?  If so, can the low-end be ignored until the product is sufficiently mature?  What combination of purchase price, optional charges and maintenance fees adequately covers costs while realistically addressing the market?

Can the product be fixed to reduce the cost of customization - cost-effectively and in time to get it to market?  Could bug releases be handled more efficiently (Internet downloads instead of visiting the client site)?

Could support issues be handled more efficiently (more staff, Web-based support, charging for support)?