Archive for January, 2010

Marketing Lessons from Haiku Bags

Sharon Eisenhauer has been a designer all her life, but had not experienced great success with any of her designs until two important things happened to her simultaneously.

First, she realized that in order to succeed, she had to take classes to understand the business side of business (and no, I didn’t pay her to say that). Second, what she needed to design came to her intuitively—she had just adopted a newborn and she couldn’t find any diaper/baby bags that were creative and unique and fit her requirements.

So she designed and constructed some bags, tested them herself, then took them to a wholesale baby trade show. As her daughter grew and her needs changed, these bags changed into something that was not just for moms, but for any woman. She decided to pitch Title 9 (an athletic clothing catalog for women). They bought everything she could make. She took her designs to REI, and the same thing happened.  Her business was launched.

Her marketing is made up of five consistent activities.

1. Sharon makes sure her bags are well-priced, well-designed, and she stands behind her work. Thus, the cornerstone of her marketing is her reputation for a well-made, well-designed, well-supported product.
2. She created a website so people could find out about her bags and where to buy them.
3. She contracted with independent sales representatives to show her bags to retail clients. She currently contracts with reps who show her designs to retailers across the US.
4. She takes her bags to the Outdoor Retailer trade shows, so other retailers can see them and she can get feedback as well as find new retail outlets.
5. She provides bags at wholesale cost to employees of retailers. Once the floor sales people use her bags, they become enthusiastic advocates of them.
6. And finally, she listens to feedback from end-users (via the retailers’ comments section of their websites and her own website); to her freelance representatives who sell her bags to retailers; and to her own intuition about what’s needed next.

All three of these sources of feedback are telling her that her next line of bags should be eco-friendly (the current ones are vegan-friendly); and she is listening.

Underlying all this marketing is a clear sense of purpose. She understands who her customer is, and also what kind of product she herself wants to make (functional and beautiful; not one or the other).

What’s the moral of this story?

1. Make an excellent product. (I know this seems obvious, but I used to own a business where we provided a sometimes excellent, sometimes not, product. It was challenging to provide consistently excellent work, and we didn’t rise to it. The Kiss of Death for that business.)
2. Make it easy for your people to find you (this task usually falls to your website, at least at first).
3. Get in front of your best prospective customers as often as possible (Sharon does this via trade shows).
4. Find a way to get frequent client feedback and respond to it.
5. Listen to your own intuition. (Or, for people who think that sounds too woo-woo, rephrase this to “Listen to your right brain.”)

I know these things all seem simple, and they are. They just aren’t easy.

How’s Your Marketing Going?

Are you clear about the marketing you’re doing, and whether it’s working or not? You can download a new questionnaire I’ve posted on my website to help you evaluate what you’re doing, and whether or not it’s working (it’s actually out of the book I’m working on now; You Hate to Market, and What to do About it).

In the meantime, if you need a beautiful, functional bag for yourself or as a gift, check out Sharon’s website, REI, or Zappos.

I’ve posted a bunch of new resources on my website. There is a  yellow file folder on the home page at www.claritytobusiness.com that will take you to them.

They are all related to my book: Passion, Plan, Profit, but you don’t have to buy the book to download the files. You’ll miss the explanations and the other work in the book, obviously, but I just want everyone who is keen to start a business to get going, whether they have the money to buy the book or not.

What Are These Resources?

I’ve included an excel template so that you can forecast your sales and expenses for 12 months, whether you sell products, services or bill by the hour. I’ve also included a spreadsheet that will help you figure out your break-even point and another one to help you get real about your cash flow. There is a business plan template from the book, as well as directions to guide you in setting up a group to complete your business plan with other people.

I know everyone is haranguing you about GETTING YOUR BUSINESS OFF TO A GREAT START IN 2010, but the reason that’s happening is because it really is a good time to start.  There’s lots of support. If you’re ready to start a new business, or want to get your current business onto a firm financial footing, download the templates, buy the book, or sign up for the accountability groups I’m leading that begin next week. This is the time.