Be everything to everyone…

Submitted by Corey Smith on Fri, 06/15/2007 - 06:45

...and you will be nothing to no one.

So often people that are trying to expand their business try to sell to the entire market. They can't define a target market because their product "is for everyone."

First of all, your product isn't for everyone. Not everyone will want it.

Second of all, you aren't good enough to make everyone happy. People buy for different reasons. Demographics can help you categorize people and learn how to sell to groups, but you can't be everything to everyone.

It is impossible.

Define your target market. Be honest with yourself. Don't be afraid to call your product a niche product. Don't be afraid to charge more. Don't be afraid to be better than the rest. You'll be happier in the end and will find that your marketshare will actually get bigger because you will know how to focus your efforts.



Corey Smith is the president of Tribute Media a web development firm providing high performing, industry specific websites. He is a businessman, writer, technology fanatic, graphic designer and web developer. His greatest passion is teaching, consulting and speaking.

You can find him on Twitter, FaceBook, FriendFeed, and LinkedIn.

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Submitted by Jared Hawk (not verified) on Fri, 06/15/2007 - 10:07.
This is just what I needed to hear this week because I've tried to juggle too many balls and you end up dropping some- better to juggle three successfully than trying five and dropping three!

Submitted by Leo Piccioli (not verified) on Sat, 06/16/2007 - 11:03.
I think this is a key issue in today's business. I keep telling myself and my people to FOCUS on things... and that "focus" means "saying NO to the rest".

Submitted by If I can get just 1 dollar for every person… - Master the Bu (not verified) on Tue, 06/26/2007 - 08:38.
[...] problem is that that is not a definition of a target market. There may be a way to get the word out to those 1 million people. The tools are available, but in [...]

Submitted by Justin Beller (not verified) on Mon, 07/02/2007 - 17:01.
The temptation to be everything to everyone is something every new business owner faces. We feel as though if we reduce the size of the pool of potential customers through niche marketing we are limiting ourselves. Not so. The "Long Tail" theory dispels that myth. If your product or service is of high value to your customers, you can charge accordingly.

Submitted by Choose your customers - Master the Business - Boise, Idaho (not verified) on Fri, 07/27/2007 - 10:56.
[...] your customers is the key to being very successful. The person who wants to be everything to everyone usually ends up being nothing to no [...]
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