Where is Your Focus? 

Recently I was visiting with a prominent LASIK eye surgeon and we were discussing the power of the laser. He was telling me that the laser was simply a ‘focused’ source of energy. In most cases the energy is light energy, although it could be many other forms of energy. I was thinking about this in the context of business, and how diffused our energy often is in our businesses. We may produce light, which translates into visibility. However, how many of us really have the penetrating power of a laser when it comes to our business?

Over the next few weeks, we will be looking at several issues of focus for business. Today, we start off with a focus on your customers. We will then move to a focus on the quality of service your customer ‘perceives’ we are providing. Finally, we will turn our focus to our market penetration strategy.

So let’s get started. Over the past week, I have had two different discussions, on different levels, regarding the issue of focus. One discussion centered on an established business that was poised to take the next step in their growth and maturation. A week earlier, we addressed the issue of segmentation within their customer base. I challenged them to look at the business from the standpoint of the various types of businesses they serve, the nature of their engagement with these businesses and the revenue that each of these segments brought to their business.

When we met the next week, you sense their excitement as they discussed what they learned from this simple exercise. They were brimming with excitement because they had determined their Natural Path client. We pressed past this discovery to make sure they could align their corporate ‘passion’ with a focus on this segment and they were confident they could. There appeared to be a sense of relief, combined with the relief of knowing they had discovered one of the keys to their success through such a simple exercise.

The other business discussion I had was with a startup company. When I first met the principle of this business he was telling about all of the things that he did and all of the markets he was pursuing. It was clear he was exciting about his work and his potential. It was also clear that he was going in too many directions. We sat down in a coffee shop for over an hour, trying to peel back the layers of his business model attempting to get to the core of his business, with the hope that this discover would help guide him to his Natural Path customer segment. We discussed several business models and settled on one narrowly-focused, significantly-populated target market that he could ‘own.’

So let me ask you this question: “Do you know what your Natural Path customer or client looks like? If not, take some time this week and look at the different characteristics of your customer base. Identify as many demographic markers as you can. These markers may include the geography of your customer base; the products or services you sell most often; the average ticket price; or the average age of your customer or client.

If you need some help with this, I am available. You can click on the Virtual Office link below or contact me via email. You can also join me on my webinar ‘Knowing Your Customer.’

Next week we are going to look at how you can learn the unique aspects of your business that your customers or clients value most.

Gary J. LaRoy, 

President/Founder
Natural Path Marketing