As indie
business owners, one of the elements most of us struggle with is time
management. It can be so difficult, especially when we probably most enjoy the
"making" of our goods. And I know that I can also become
consumed in various aspects of my business, wanting to pretend I'm
"marketing."
I
say “pretend I’m marketing” because while it’s imporant for a business owner
who relies upon social media strategies to market our products, it’s also
extremely easy to be pulled into the Internet, becoming a “computer
potato.” Sound familiar?
So
these are the times I return to my good ol’ college textbooks for guidance.
Several
marketing strategies are defined, and intuitively we gravitate to one or
another without being strategic in our thought:
§
Product Leadership - being the best in our
field...think Google for search engines.
§
Concentrated Growth - resources are directed to the
growth of a single product, in a single market with a single strategy.
§
Market Development - opening additional geographic
markets or market segments. E.g., for social media, expanding into another
online marketing venue; advertising in a new media.
§
Product Development - modifying an existing product
for a new market. For example, Philadelphia Cream Cheese broadening into
flavored cream cheese products and cooking ingredients.
§
Innovation - developing a new product or service.
Apple created few new products or services of their own, but they took the
concepts to new mass markets.
§
Horizontal Integration - acquiring
product lines in the same stage as yours. For example, jewelers specializing in
earrings begin to develop necklaces and watches.
§
Vertical Integration - acquiring
vendors or suppliers for sales growth. Many Etsy vendors begin to sell supplies
as a way to increase their revenue.
While
basic and certainly not exclusive, this should give us a few examples of how to
increase our business. Many of you may doing some of these strategies already.
If
you create bracelets, are you also creating and selling watches?
Horizontal Integration.
If
you create necklaces, are you selling supplies you no longer need? Vertical
Integration.
For
myself, I've expanded my product line about as full as I can go with horizontal
integration in simply the candle market. I have three options for
container candles, tea lights, then I moved into votives, then naturally into
candle tarts. My horizontal integration is the home fragrance market,
as I recently expanded into reed diffusers and other air freshener products.
So
what's next?
Unless
I add more fragrances (product development), I will need to explore other
opportunities for growth. While I realize Etsy is an extremely
competitive market for home fragrances, I prefer not to venture into other
online opportunities (market development). I believe social media can only
handle one marketplace and prefer to direct these efforts to one online shop. I
do explore market development by trying to land my products into
bricks and mortar retail environments and personalized products with event
planners.
So,
this is a sample of the internal dialogue I have when looking for business
opportunities and growth. If you don't have a business background, I
recommend you do some simple online research to learn how best you can grow
your business as well.
Happy
sales!
Written By: DLitesbyDorene
