Is there such a thing as too much choice? Hard to say. But empirical evidence indicates a multitude of menu items can actually hinder selection.

Lots of Mediocrity Vs. A Little Excellence

Sure, diners have exhaustive menus, but diners aren’t noted for quality. Chez FiFi, that Five Star French Restaurant, on the other hand offers less than ten menu options – all exquisite culinary delights.

Too Much Choice: A Common Mistake Made By Many Businesses

It happens all the time in business, too. A wide range of offerings creates an uncertain position in the marketplace. I’ve seen it with more than a few clients, again and again.

A Current Client’s Ubiquitous Misstep

A client I’m currently working with is caught in the thick of this “variety vs. focus” quagmire.
To begin with, her business is difficult to describe. She’s a counselor and life coach with a spiritual new age approach. She offers one-on-one counseling sessions, individual training programs and various written and audio courses.
Her services address a range of issues. Self-improvement, love relationships, family relationships, career, finances, and more.
Despite all of her offerings, however, her income isn’t growing at the level she aspires to achieve. Moreover the largest and fastest growing segment of her business is individual counseling… an element of her business she desperately wants to abandon to.
The problem? Ubiquity.
What is she? A shamanic guru (as many of her client’s view her)? A counselor? An instructor who trains students one-on-one? Or an internet marketer who creates and sells self-help courses online?
Moreover, what’s her specialty? What’s the angle or hook that grabs prospective client’s attention and reels them in? Advice on… Relationships? Career and money? Spiritual based self-improvement?
There’s too much ambiguity here. Too many questions left unanswered. How could a prospective client ever choose?

CASE STUDY

Consider for a moment the tale of two psychologists.

The Generalist

The first, a general psychologist who treats patients with relationship issues (both romantic and family oriented), depression, drug and alcohol addiction and myriad other common (and not so common) psychological issues.

The Specialist

The second, a behavioral psychologist who exclusively treats patients struggling with drug and alcohol addiction.

Who Wins?

So which practitioner (head-shrinker, as the popular vernacular goes) do you think has the most patients?
Conventional wisdom would dictate psychologist #1, right? Of course, he’s willing, and seemingly able, to treat any and every patient who walks through his office door.
Your supposition, however, would be DEAD WRONG.
In fact, psychologist #2 has more business than he knows what to do with. He’s got patients coming out of his ears, and he’s actually turning away new clients.
That’s because, when it comes to drug and alcohol addiction treatment, he’s THE MAN in clinical circles. His reputation precedes him in the industry. Other therapists refer him patients they don’t feel equipped to handle. Counseling and rehab programs refer him patients, too. And he pulls in lots of patient referrals, because most recovering addicts hang with other recovering addicts…
DING-DING-DING – we have a winner – psychologist #2!
But there’s another side to this quandary…

The Problem With Specialization (Negating Your Niche)

When you first launch your business, catering to a niche provides a platform for initial growth (potentially rapid growth) and helps establish a solid foundation. This is who you are and what you do.
Unfortunately, however, many small businesses hit a wall after a surge of initial growth.
They reach a saturation point within their specific niche. They’ve at least made contact with, if not already converted the majority of prospects in their particular space. New prospects trickle in slowly. And business growth stagnates.
OK, you’ve risen to the top of your niche. So the question is – what now?

CASE STUDY

Another client of mine, a business law attorney who migrated from Tucson (Arizona) to Los Angeles, provides the perfect case study for mastering your niche before expanding your reach.

A Solid Business Law Foundation

After graduating from law school at the University of Arizona, this young attorney went to work as junior associate in a large business litigation firm. He worked with a variety of clients handling cases involving trademark registration and copyright infringement.

Finding a Niche

From there, he went to work for a boutique law firm in Los Angeles, which exclusively represented fashion designers and clothing labels in trademark registration and infringement protection.

The Niche Was Not Enough…

During his tenure with the boutique firm, he noticed something. Designers and many of the startup companies looking to break into product manufacturing had an idea for a trademark, but nothing else. No ideas about incorporation, partnership structure or plans for the future, particularly how to handle growth and expansion should their product succeed and generate a financial windfall.
When the young attorney decided to launch his own firm, he knew he couldn’t survive on trademark registration and protection alone. He had to expand his reach, and he had an idea – based on the gaps he saw in the approach of so many startup businesses – of what to do…

Following a Logical Progression

What do new and expanding businesses need? Corporate formations, founder’s agreements, partnership agreements and employment agreements. And of course, the intellectual property protections trademarking and infringement defense provides.
Taking products to the retail market? Negotiating fair and favorable leases is another important legal issue many startups and growing businesses face in the product development space.

A New Law Firm Was Born – Reaching Beyond the Founder’s Niche

The young attorney had a vision for a business law firm that offers the full slate of services described above (and even a few more) to startup and expanding companies.
After rising to the top of his niche in trademark registration and infringement protection, the young attorney launched his own firm. And a year and half later, his now not-so-new-business is THRIVING.
But this wise beyond his years young attorney followed the rules. He mastered his niche (a process which revealed the need for a full service “startup” business law practice) before he expanded his reach (launching his new firm).

Where Do You Fall on Niche Vs. Reach?

What’s your experience? Can strictly serving a niche facilitate growth? And if now, what’s the point at which you can reach beyond the niche that made your business what it is?
Join the conversation at my Google+ page – see you there!