Here's one of the most durable marketing rules, one that's been around
for years. It's good advice for any business. If you want to sell lots
of products and services, if you want to expand your business with loads
of eager new customers--sell wide, sell deep.
Let's look at this timeless rule of good marketing. It's full of
ideas and inspiration that can fatten your pocketbook rather quickly.
The best ideas are ones that help you work smarter, not harder. Here's
how "sell wide, sell deep" works.
"Sell wide" means offering lots of products or services that follow a
basic theme (for example: all things offered by a printer). "Sell
deep" means finding lots of good variations on a successful product.
Let's say you have one product or service that customer after customer
is ready to plunk down money to buy. You start thinking "If I had ten
products just like that one I'd get rich." If you've got a glazed
donut that is the hottest breakfast item on your downtown lunch cart,
why not expand on the idea? Offer a glazed with frosting. Then offer
those frosting flavors in chocolate, maple, strawberry, maybe even
cherry. That's selling "deep."
Now offer different kinds of donuts and related items like muffins and
coffee. Give your customers choices of old-fashioned donuts, cake donuts,
buttermilk, donuts with sprinkles, and donuts that commemorate an upcoming
holiday. That's selling "wide."
Many businesses find a big increase in revenue when they introduce customers
to a low-priced product, then step them up to increasingly more involved
and expensive products or services. Customers are ready to spend more for
more advanced services as they come to trust and rely on you.
If you aren't able to provide extra products or services yourself, contract
with others to provide them for you. Many web site owners swear by their
"back page" items. You can easily offer your customers lots of products and
services supplied by others at very little cost to your own company.
How To Find a Winner...Then Go Wide and Deep.
All businesses start out with some idea of what they want to sell. In
the beginning you develop a few promising products and services and
put them out there to gage the public's interest. Some products work,
others don't, and sometimes you get a request out of left field that
turns into your most important profit source.
When I started my business, I thought that handing out marketing
advice would be my bread and butter. Before long, someone asked me to
write a press release. It never occurred to me to be in the press
release business, but as soon as I put "writes press releases" on my
web site, I got dozens of orders. Presto, a new profit source. I
expanded it into lots of customized variations. Press releases to be
sent via email, releases for regular mail, releases intended for major
magazines and newspapers, and releases intended for email newsletters.
The product line soon went wide and deep, much to the delight of
clients who were looking for just the right service tailored to their
needs.
Listen closely to what your customers and prospects are saying. When
they talk about a problem they have, think of it has a hint for
another product or service you can offer to solve that problem.
Those unexpected suggestions are your most important opportunities.
Simple Research Gives You A Head Start.
You don't have to wait for customers and prospects to suggest new
products and services. Ask them in clever ways that get them thinking
for you. "How did that work for you? Was it as effective as it could
have been? What problems are you having that we might be able to
solve for you?" Customers can often see things that people inside the
business don't realize.
You've seen people conducting surveys in the mall. That kind of
research isn't very good from a statistical standpoint. You can't get
reliable numbers and percentages from it. However, you CAN use simple
research to get ideas for new products and services. Just like some
restaurant chains, give customers a short questionnaire to fill out.
Have them leave their comments for improvements or new services.
Reward them if you can with a discount or free offer.
Home-grown research, from entry forms on your counter to spending time
on the phone with a prospect, can show you new ways to expand your
successful products and services. Sell wide, sell deep to make more
money.
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