Don't risk being no one

“If you’re everything to everyone, then you risk being no one.”

I have always gotten positive feedback from this quote and recently entered it to be considered for the 2010 Woman’s Advantage Page-a-Day Calendar. Although I created this quote to be the slogan for my business, it has dual meanings to me. On a professional level, a lot of people go into business thinking that everyone in the marketplace is their customer and this could not be further from the truth.

Sure it would be nice to view everyone as your customer, but doing so will cause you to lose a lot of money (unnecessarily) and you will not be in business very long. A perfect example to demonstrate this point is companies that advertise their services by leaving flyers on cars. I cringe whenever I see this because I can only imagine all the money they spent on printing up these flyers—when the majority of them will ultimately end up in the garbage. The funds they spent to print up these flyers could have been used to research who was truly within their target market and the best medium to reach them (i.e. social networking sites, associations, etc.); thus, saving them money and increasing their chances of gaining more customers.

It is extremely costly appeal to those outside of your niche so you need to focus on those who are more likely to buy your product or service (you can find this information by conducting market research). Having this knowledge will increase your chances of attracting these people to be your customers. You will be able to identify their needs and determine the best course of action in how to go about satisfying them. The key to operating a successful company is being able to identify and connect with these individuals.

Successful companies such as WalMart, McDonalds, Microsoft, etc. have a unique value proposition—so what is it that you bring to the table? Your company has to be able to stand out from the crowd. People have various motives for shopping at a particular store or use a certain service. Therefore, it is up to you to determine the reason that will lure customers to your company (i.e. shopping at Apple because you like the aesthetics of their products).

I always have those seeking to do business with us answer the question, “Why are you unique?” Think. If you do not know the answer to this question you can’t expect your customers to know. People don’t have time to go around figuring out what you have to offer or what you represent (consultants are the exception to the rule—we always make time). You either tell them or they will go to someone else who has the answer they are looking to hear.

I fear the reason many business owners adopt the mindset of trying to promote their product to everyone is not just for monetary reasons. When I was a kid, I wanted everyone to like me because I felt like I had a lot to offer. I was a pretty average kid. I stayed out of trouble and always went out of my way to be helpful, but for some reason I still had those that didn’t like me. This did not sit well with me.

I wanted everyone to like me so in order to accomplish this feat, like a chameleon I would change myself in order to fit into my surroundings. I believed I would be happier because I thought those around me would be happy to see I had changed in order to be accepted. However, the opposite happened. Not only was I miserable, but those I surrounded myself with knew I was being fake and those I was friends with before trying to change myself did not like the new “Tosha.” I finally reached a point where I couldn’t take it anymore and went back to being me.

What I have learned from my experiences is that as you get older in life you realize that not everyone is going to like you and this same concept applies to business. You may think that by promoting your product or service to everyone will make you rich. However, you will end up frustrated because it is impossible to capture everyone’s attention so it is in your best interest to focus on strengthening the unique value proposition that your product or service offers and learning more about your target market. Be the best you can be as a person and within your niche and you will be someone.