I remember encountering this business philosophy years ago when I walked into a Chipotle for the first time (originally written before the recent health scares). Pretty much all they did was burritos - very good burritos. The menu has expanded a bit since then, but their menu is still pretty focused and they let you craft a great burrito.
Enter Harry's - a newly launched website/business that sells two models of razors, blades for less than $2 each, and shaving cream. That's it.
These are special German-engineered blades for half the normal price and without the "Überschuss" (excess, waste). Harry's is from the same folks that focused on eye-wear to create the successful Warby Parker fashion eyeglass site.
So how do boutique websites compete with the world's largest ...?
It turns out that the world is moving in two simultaneous directions - larger and smaller. We used to think that the world was normally distributed, in the shape of the bell curve that we learned in statistics. It turns out that more often the world is reflecting a "well curve" with lots of large, lots of small, and relatively little in between. Idea Guy Dan Pink wrote about this in 2003 and it has become a truth in my book - especially since I serve clients at both ends of the curve and few in between.
For you, dear reader, it may be a good reminder to focus on what you do best. For me, how does teaching presentation skills at the world's largest retailer fit in with helping a small non-profit promote themselves on the Web? It is about our focus on one core value proposition.
Wave's End Services, LLC, is built around helping our clients tell their story - it could be with a website, social networking, or with a presentation that they take on the road to sell themselves to potential clients. I am regularly faced with a business opportunity that sounds interesting, but which could become a distraction if I pick it up and add to my existing portfolio of services.
I work to balance staying current with newer, better technologies and offering clients services that they will value, versus offering one of everything to my clients. In fact, I just took a promising new web technology off of our list of offerings because it was one step too far away from our core.
What is your core that you want to become the best available at?
Part 2 of the Story
Speaking of focus. A few years ago, I was teaching the in-house Visual Communications class (crafting presentations that tell business stories that support decision making). I frequently ask members of the class for suggestions on where to have supper that night.
A new place was suggested, the Monte Ne Inn, a few miles down a winding country road outside of nearby Rogers, Arkansas.
What makes the Inn special is that there is no menu. The Monte Ne Inn serves only one thing - the best fried chicken in the region. You get it family style, with home-baked bread and apple butter, sides and bean soup. All you can eat. Reservations are recommended on their website.
I called and made reservations for 5:30. I had wonderful fried chicken, my fill of side dishes, and my choice of dessert (yes they make more than one kind of dessert). When I left just before 7:00PM on a Tuesday evening, the line of diners coming into the Inn was out the door. At a small restaurant literally in the middle of nowhere in northwest Arkansas.
Do one thing, and do it better than anyone else.
