In 2008, I was the second person in the boutique consulting firm I worked for to get laid off—after the Director of HR, if you can believe that!

The problem was, our clients were largely in the financial sector and, as the mortgage crisis came to a head and titans of the industry began to falter (not to mention the banks), the opportunities dried up faster than teardrops in the desert.

I am a big proponent of getting very niche with your target audience as a small business so you can really hone in on what's truly important and valuable to the folks who are likeliest to buy from you.

And, to be clear, that's what my old employer did and quite successfully.

But here's where they went wrong: They failed to replicate that success with other audiences in a timely manner.

Even though I had urged them to utilize my background and knowledge of the education and healthcare sectors to expand our reach as business began to slow, it wasn't until the financial crisis had gained considerable momentum that they began to employ a diversification strategy.

Sadly, too late to save a lot of jobs and the leadership a lot of grief and tough choices.

I see many other small businesses doing this, too.

It's comfortable to find your lane and stay in it. To keep doing what works. But that complacency can cost you big time.

If the pandemic has taught us anything, it's that things can change very quickly and without warning.

We're seeing rapid shifts in the economy more often than ever before. The acceleration of technology and the impact of global social unrest and frequent natural disasters on supply chains, governmental oversight, and so much more is dizzying, to say the least.

So how do you strike a balance between narrowing your marketing focus to ensure effectiveness and diversifying your strategy to protect your ongoing business health?

Two of the best ways I know how to do this are by expanding your audience intelligently to the attract very similar customers to those you're already serving, and/or by offering new ways to support the same customers.

The key questions to ask when evaluating which to pursue are:

1. What happens if I broaden one of the variables defining my audience: geographic location, industry, profession, lifestyle situation? Does that open up a new market for me and to what degree?
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2. What have I learned about my customers problems, situations, aspirations, and struggles that affords new product or service opportunities for my business and how easily can I bring these to market?

Of course, the line of inquiry doesn't stop here.

For each of these diversification strategies, there's a whole bunch of questions you need to address to ensure you're expanding in a way that makes sense for you and your audience.

And, it's important to remember that no matter your strategy, it needs to be one that complements and strengthens your core business.

If you'd like some help figuring it all out, schedule a free business conversation with me today.
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Until next time,

PS - In case you missed it, last week I explained why you've got No Competition.

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Your success is our strategy!

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