Have you ever asked yourself this question? There are several reasons this is important:
Do you like your customers?
Some we really like, some we tolerate, some we dread every time the phone rings. So in other words, some customers suck up energy and some give us energy. Which can you do your very best work with? Duh…
The Pie Is Usually Big Enough
I love pie, don’t you? Let’s compare your market segment(s) to a pie. Every market pie has a certain size. It’s impossible to serve the entire market (or eat the entire pie). It’s too big, or at least it should be.
That being the case, it’s a great idea to decide how much of the pie you want, and which piece. In our case, the market is never uniform. There are all kinds of customers within a market segment. Did you realize you could choose? The larger the piece you want the greater the risk you take by working with less ideal customers.
Ok, So How Big Is My Pie?
Have you determined the size of your market pie? It makes no sense to chase a market that is too small to meet your business goals. There is usually enough free data available to gauge this. You can find data on the internet, or you can hire an intern going to college to conduct some research in this area.
Alternatively, you can work with a market research firm who has access to databases. They can find specific companies by revenue, by employee count, by geography, etc. They can also create and sell you a potential customer list.
Next thing, define your ideal customer
Valuable values: Have you defined your company values, and are they in alignment with your personal values? How well do they align with your customer’s values?
What Size Are You? No, I’m not trying to be rude here… It’s just that sometimes you have specific products/services and knowhow that work exceptionally well with certain sized customers.
Where’s Waldo? Do you remember that game? You were presented with a complex picture containing tons of graphics, and your task was to find this little character called Waldo.
You need to find where your customers are, especially if you are providing services to them. So geography is critical when you need physical presence with customers.
Did it work??
Ok, now you should be able to see your market size, location (if that’s important), and company revenue. And you have a potential customer list.
It’s time to figure out your marketing approach and sales process. More on that next month…
Still stuck in the mud on this? No worries, we can help. Give us a call…
