5 Steps to Finding Growth Opportunities

Most companies participate in mature categories,from a growth standpoint. Fighting the category trend to grow the brand is difficult in a mature category. Uncovering growth opportunities will be done so in very different ways than opportunities for brands in a growth category.  

The careful balance and application of five marketing tools can provide success for a business. The visual below applies to both B2B or B2C corporations and highlights the five steps companies must consider for planning purposes:

Seeking Input on a New Diagnostic Tool

I am writing a whitepaper (or an eBook, I’m not really sure what you call them these days) and it is coming along quite well.  It will be a tool to provide a quick, concise diagnostic on where a company (consumer driven manufacturing, but could also be B2B) will need to focus to accomplish their long-term objectives and how far that is from their current position. 

A company owner or division head must complete the following step-by-step approach into in order to complete the assessment:

1. Determine five-year goals on critical metrics (sales, profit and market share).
2. Rate the relative importance of success of several key diagnostics (the book outlines them) in order to reach the goal.
3. Rate the company strength in eight (mostly) marketing and demand generating areas.
4. The tool will then provide feedback on the necessary level of focus in each area in order to accomplish goals.

The end result looks something like the visual below. 

A Path to Finding Gold in New Markets

Some say that the grass always looks greener on the other side of the fence. Business leaders and marketers often wish to play in markets in which they don’t currently compete, or even create new markets, wistfully imagining themselves like pioneers in the wild west, scooping up incremental volume like gold from untouched streams in the hills of California. After all, spending years slugging it out in bloody battle for market share, well… anybody might do a little daydreaming.
At some point, most businesses will seek growth by looking carefully at their capabilities and entering a new market. This approach is often flawed, however. Organizations tend to think in terms of internal capabilities as success criteria – their brand, processes, distribution, speed, agility and entrepreneurial spirit. The secret to success, however, is in the honest assessment and understanding of the market being considered, and what is needed to solve an unmet need in the market.
There is a simple approach to examining a new market…..