Category: brand

I’m all for efficiencies and cost reductions, but at some point, the negative impact of the miserliness outweighs the good it is doing for the organization.

As an example, this mailbox has long past its prime. Yes, the Postal Service saves funds by not replacing it, but having their equipment in such disrepair reflects poorly on them.

Look at your interior and exterior space. Do you have things that need painting, repairing, or replacing? Shabby may be chic in a young person’s fashion world, but in organizations, shabby is not a term you want associated with your brand.

Venmo has long been one of the leading apps for people to send and receive money but their new partnerships are going to help their usage multiply. In a series of very smart moves, Venmo has partnered with Hallmark to enable people to Venmo via select greeting cards, and they partnered with major brands to offer gift cards that can be personalized and sent directly through the Venmo app.

I suspect my nieces and nephews will be thrilled with receiving funds via Venmo instead of a check, and I will be happier that way instead of risking cash in the ever-less-dependable US Mail.

Venmo could have followed a strategy to increase the number of transactions from its current users, try expanding its base through brand new users, or convince Zelle or Apple Pay users to switch. But these new options set the app apart and create a new category of use.

What can you learn from Venmo about how to expand your market? The right partnerships are a gift for both parties.

While on vacation, we took a tour of the Sprecher Brewery in Milwaukee. Before and after the tour, guests are able to partake of free samples in the “beer garden” — consisting of ale, of course, but also of root beer and dozens of varieties of flavored soda.

It wasn’t always like this. The family brewery originally produced only beer — until the owner’s wife noticed that the children on tour were bored while the adults were enjoying their libations. She suggested that they create something non-alcoholic, and Sprecher root beer was born.

Before this, Sprecher’s output was 100% beer. Today, its sales consist of 75% root beer, 10% other soda flavors, and only 15% beer!

There may be an untapped audience adjacent to the one you have cultivated. Look at your consumers broadly and see if you can’t brew yourself a new market as Sprecher did.

It’s likely you have heard of Etsy, the e-commerce leader for handmade craft products. It’s a behemoth — 7.4 million sellers did a total of $13.3 billion in gross sales last year, thanks to 96 million active buyers.

Michael’s, the craft store chain, has decided that it wants to get in on part of that action. The company is now launching its own e-commerce platform — MakerPlace — where people can sell handmade goods, teach online classes or share how-to’s — all for a lower fee than Etsy and with flexible membership options.

On one hand, it makes sense. The market is huge and many crafters rely on Michael’s as the source for their materials and supplies. On the other hand, Etsy is a monster with an established infrastructure and huge name recognition, so it will take some effort to carve away some of its market.

I doubt you’ll be setting up your own e-commerce platform but watch the MakerPlace story closely. Every organization has its own version of the Etsy industry leader. There are lessons to learn about how to go up against a giant (or why not to). Pay attention to what Michael’s has to teach you.