When many people leave the corporate environment and start working for themselves, they find the market landscape very different.
You only have the advantage when you understand the market you are dealing with.
~ Andy T Cumming
Knowing the terrain is critical when it comes to understanding your market.
Napoleon Bonaparte would usually build his battle strategy based on the numbers he was up against, the resources he had available and would personally visit each battlefield before every battle. He was considering all the variables involved to adapt and create his perfect strategy.
As a business owner knowing the market landscape is just as critical. The mistakes that many people make is they do not give this area its full attention. Instead, they make assumptions rather than basing decisions upon hard facts.
The only thing worse than going in the wrong direction, is going in the wrong direction enthusiastically.
~ Unknown
When it goes wrong
What tends to happen for many new and established business owners is that they put a lot of money and effort to attract clients only to find these clients don’t respond. With the market being very overcrowded they get lost in the crowd, not being seen or heard. Worse still, the market prefers their competitors over them.
As an owner, you end up wasting time and money because you can’t reach potential clients, which leads to no sales, which inevitably means you do not have a business.
When it goes right
You attract plenty of better quality clients who can and will pay for your products and services. You are in a market where you become the most important person in your client’s world making any competition irrelevant. You are able to reach the right people, on the right platforms making your time and effort in sourcing clients pay off.
Hence you generate a steady flow of leads who convert into clients without there being a hard sell where you are battling with everyone else.
Five key things you must do
What is your niche?
Your niche is the market space in which you operate. It is your playing field. It is also the category your client sees you sitting within.
If a potential client cannot easily categorise you, then you cannot clearly articulate to them what you do and thus you won’t get their attention.
If you said to your customer you are a lawyer, then they know what you are. The market instantly recognises what you do. To go a further level, you can subcategorise, as a sub-niche could be family law with a further sub-niche of divorce law.
You could even go further to say you only work with women, based in London and more specifically in the West London area.
Even though you can do all the other subcategories, you can be predominantly known for having specialist knowledge in your sub-niche.
The name Fiona Shackleton may not be a name that is highly recognised to the general public. But if you were a celebrity going through a multi-million divorce then her name would be top of your list.
Even though her law firm also covers all other areas of The Law, she is known as the Celebrity Divorce Lawyer.
So while it is possible you will have diverse and wide-ranging set of skills to fit into different categories, it is prudent to become a recognised authority in one, before diversifying.
Is it meaningful?
If your clients have a need or a want what you deliver, the more meaning it has to them and the more value they and you can apportion to it.
The bigger the transformation your clients have from your deliverable, the more valuable your business becomes, and the more you can charge for your deliverable.
If someone wants to scale their business and you are offering a ratio of 2:1 then they will not see enough transformation. However, if you have the proof you can scale them to a ration of 8:1, they are highly likely to be willing to pay more for what you can deliver.
Is it viable?
We have to consider if the market space you have chosen is a viable option and is it feasible to enter into. It’s about getting the product-market fit right.
Know your market space inside out. This will enable you to define how many customers you can potentially reach and who your competition is. With a clearly defined market space, you can make projections and set targets in terms of client numbers and overall business growth.
Who is your client?
Undertaking a client/customer profile is essential. Who are they, where do they hang out, what do they do, what’s their age range; all these factors need to be researched and noted.
From your research, you can then identify their buying habits, their core problems, actually whether they can afford what you have to deliver and whether there will be a like-match to you and your business.
Who are your competitors?
Go out of your way to find who are your top ten competitors within your market space. Now you may know them already, or have to do extensive research. Ideally, you are looking for those who offer the same deliverable, but if you’re offering a new innovation, go for the nearest fit.
Once you have your top ten, rationally list out their strengths and weaknesses. Do this in a very objective way, ideally putting yourself in the clients shoes to understand why people buy from them.
Once you have all this, you can easily establish how to differentiate yourself so you have something unique to offer.
What is your status in the market?
Knowing what your current status is within your market space will help you to know how to change it, to get to where you want to be. Developing this plan is part of your strategic execution to grow your business, using the right messaging to attract clients.
If you are about to transition from employment and want to be better prepared to avoid any unwanted surprises, you are not alone.
If you are looking for some help on entering the market landscape, you want to know what your options are, and are ready to control your own outcome, then please do connect with me here or on email at andy@andytcuming.com.
We can have a chat to connect and discover if we can be of service to each other.
Speak to you soon.
Andy
P.S. When it suits you, here are three ways I may be able to help you:
- Join the Small Business Owners UK Network
We have recently started a LinkedIn Group for small business owners where you can learn, share and connect. Join by clicking here. - Apply to join the Fast Track To Impact Case Study Group
I am putting together (application only) a new small business case study group in September 2019. Should you like to work with me on how to stand out and be recognised in your market space to attract more clients, sent me a message with the words Fast Track click here. - Attend a Clarity Session
If you would like to know where you stand right now and are looking to increase your monthly earnings, send me a message with the words
“Clarity Session” and I will get you all the details click here.
- How to Make Yourself Marketable as a Business Owner. - October 2, 2019
- Starting A New Business – Know your market landscape - September 24, 2019
- Starting a New Business – The Prepared Business Owner - August 22, 2019
