The Focus Factor

Focus Your Efforts For Maximum Impact and Profits

A new Indie Beauty Network member (I'll call her Ann) who does not make cosmetics recently wrote to express her excitement at being an IBN member. She noted that IBN was primarily aimed at cosmetics manufacturers, and wondered if I would consider aiming at other audiences.

It's clear that the Indie "Beauty" Network is aimed at beauty companies, and purposefully so. As I taught in the "Riches Are In the Niches" Group Coaching last month, the worst thing I could do as a business leader is try to go in so many directions that I ultimately go nowhere and serve no one. Focusing in a particular direction allows me to concentrate my efforts for maximum impact, both inside and outside of my target audience.

If you feel like your income potential is diluted because you are aiming in too many directions, here are some quick tips to help you focus your efforts so you can maximize profits.

1. Ditch the "Kitchen Sink" Mentality. Potential customers are turned off when they perceive that your product line contains everything and the kitchen sink. Consumers want to buy from people who are focused on them and their unique needs. Stop trying to give everyone everything. Ditching the "kitchen sink" mindset is crucial to your success as an Indie Business owner.

2. Coordinate Your Product Line With Your Best Talents & Gifts. When I expressed this concept to a client in a recent coaching session, a light bulb went off in her head. She pared down her offerings to products that allow her to use her professional salon background as a powerful sales tool to promote her products. Now that she's targeting fellow salon professionals, the trust factor is enhanced and she sells more of a smaller number of products to a larger number of qualified buyers.

3. Eliminate Products That Don't Sell. Get rid of everything in your product line that sells "a little bit." It's hardly worth it to continue offering products just because 1 or 2 devoted customers buy them now and then. Instead of making a little money on those products, make more money on the products that sell best by focusing your efforts there. This frees you up emotionally and physically to take advantage of sales opportunities as they arise.

Instead of making some money on a lot of products, design your business so you can make more money on fewer products. Let your customers know that, from time to time, products that do not sell well are replaced by products that more customers like.

Sometimes, it's hard to focus on the big picture when you're stressed out about that one sale that gets away. But Ann, the new IBN member whose question inspired this post, is proof positive that focused efforts not only hit a focused target, but also find their mark around the target. It's a win/win situation for everyone.

This type of relentless focus has served me well for nearly 10 years. Sure, it means I lose one or two buyers now and then, but then, 5 or 6 happy customers replace them.

For more small business marketing and sales tips, subscribe to Indie Business Blog today.

More from the blog