Don't lose focus when expanding your small business
— -- Q: Steve - I would like to know what you think of this idea: I own a website devoted to horses. We get a lot of traffic, and I earn a nice income from it. But I want to grow, and besides horses, my passion is dogs, so what I am thinking is adding a dog component to the site, similar to the horse part. What do you think?
— Jeri
A: Sorry, but I think you are barking up the wrong tree.
Of course we all want to grow our businesses, but you have to do it in a way that is organic, natural, and that blends into, rather than messes with, your brand. I'm not sure dogs and horses mix.
Example: Apple Computer is in the news these days because of the retirement of Steve Jobs. Well, one reason, a key reason, why Apple became Apple is that it and Jobs introduced products that complemented each other and seamlessly fit together - iTunes ran on the iPod and the iPod morphed into the iPhone. Apple knows what it does best and doesn't try to do more than that. They do not try to be all things to all people (which likely would make them nothing to no one) and instead focuses on its core competencies.
Here's how to do it wrong, and we have all seen these businesses: The Chinese restaurant that advertises "Chinese and American food." Well, which one is it? Instead of promising to do one thing great, it's as if they are telling the world, "We are mediocre at not one, but two things!"
Recently, I was speaking with Kyle Janssens, the Senior Brand Manager for one of my clients, Greatland, about this very idea. Greatland is a very unique business that does exactly what I am talking about. Greatland does one thing, and they do it very well: Helping small and medium businesses "with simple solutions to the complicated issue of W-2 and 1099 reporting." As such, they have become the market leader in this niche.
Janssens explained to me that Greatland doesn't try to be the biggest, broadest software company round, but instead, wants in fact to do and be the opposite: To be the very best at the one thing they do best. Janssens says, "We don't try and solve all of the problems for a small business, but just one, and we do that very, very well."
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