FINDING THE 5%: STRATEGY BEYOND THE CROWD | PART 2
By Angie Thompson
I have spent a lot of time in rooms filled with good people doing good work. Business luncheons, community events, nonprofit gatherings, conferences, expos and networking meetings can create relationships that would be difficult to build anywhere else. I've made introductions, learned about community needs and developed relationships I value.
But there have also been times when I've looked around those rooms and realized how many of us already knew one another.
We could exchange referrals, learn about available resources and maintain professional relationships. There was certainly value in being there.
What those events didn't always do was introduce us to people outside our existing circles. We were visible, but we weren't necessarily reaching new audiences.
Who Is Actually in the Room?
Market saturation isn't just about attending the same events. It's also about how often we're reaching the same people, even when we're participating in different activities.
Business leaders may serve on multiple boards, belong to civic organizations and sponsor community programs. Donors may support several causes, while nonprofit professionals often encounter the same people at workshops, meetings and fundraising events.
It's easy to feel as though we're reaching a large audience because we're active in so many places. But a large attendance number doesn't necessarily mean we're reaching more people. Sometimes we're repeatedly visible to different combinations of the same people.
That's not necessarily bad. Research from the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute describes mental availability as being easily thought of in relevant buying situations. Familiarity has value because people are more likely to remember us when they have a reason to need what we offer.
I see that in my own consulting business. I participate in community activities and events, and I don't measure every experience by whether someone hires me the next morning. Some activities help people become familiar with my work. Others strengthen relationships or lead to introductions much later.
The problem comes when I convince myself an activity is bringing in new business when what it's really doing is building familiarity. Both are useful, but they're not the same result.
“Credibility and customer acquisition are not the same thing.”
Give the Room a Job
When evaluating marketing and outreach activities, it's easy to focus on the membership fees, sponsorships and registration costs. But I also want to consider the time involved and what else I could accomplish with that time.
An event that costs $50 may also require three hours away from other work. A sponsorship may involve artwork, materials, preparation and staff time. A committee membership may include meetings, travel and follow-up.
None of those investments is automatically a poor decision. But I want to know what I expect to receive in return.
Revenue may be one answer, but it's not the only one. An activity might generate referrals, strengthen relationships, introduce prospective customers or donors, provide useful information or support an organization whose work we believe in.
The important thing is knowing what we expect that activity to accomplish.
If I'm attending an event to maintain relationships, seeing familiar faces may be exactly what I want. If I'm hoping to generate referrals, I need to consider whether I'm spending time with people who could reasonably refer someone to me. And if my goal is to reach new customers, I should pay attention to whether I'm actually meeting anyone new.
That's more useful than simply saying, "We need to be visible." Ask: Visible to whom, and for what purpose?
The question isn't whether we should continue attending familiar events or participating in organizations where we already know most of the people. It's whether those activities are accomplishing what we want them to accomplish.
We can continue participating because we're getting the results we want, change how we use the opportunity or reconsider whether it's the right place to reach our intended audience.
“Being visible is not always the same as expanding your audience.”
Who Is Not Here?
But what about the people who aren't in those rooms?
Blue Ocean Strategy encourages organizations to look beyond their current customers and consider people who aren't participating in the existing market. We can spend considerable time competing for the attention of people who already know what we offer while overlooking those who have never considered it.
For a nonprofit, that might mean reaching people who would appreciate its mission but have never attended an event, participated in a program or considered supporting its work.
For a small business or consultant, it might mean reaching people who have a need but aren't familiar with the services or expertise available to help them.
Part 3 will explore how to identify these overlooked opportunities and what it takes to reach them.
Sometimes You Have to Create a Different Room
During one period of my career, I wanted more people to experience an organization firsthand. Rather than relying primarily on traditional fundraising events, I began developing other reasons for people to visit.
Over twelve months, I organized approximately 40 gatherings, including educational programs, social activities, building tours, professional seminars and entertainment. Some were larger than others, and they weren't intended primarily to raise money.
More than 1,000 people came through the building during that period.
I wouldn't look back at that experience and suggest that every organization should create 40 events. That would miss the point.
Our goal was to introduce the organization to people who might not respond to a traditional fundraising appeal. An interesting speaker, a professional seminar or an invitation from a friend gave people a reason to visit without being asked for a donation.
I also used surveys and focus groups to learn what people understood, wanted and sometimes misunderstood about the organization. We learned more about the community, and the people who visited learned more about the organization.
Those conversations helped establish relationships with people we might not otherwise have reached.
Go Where the People Already Are
Creating and hosting our own events isn't the only way to reach new audiences. Sometimes it makes more sense to find out where the people we want to reach are already spending their time and who has relationships with them.
That might mean partnering with another business, accepting an invitation to speak to a group or asking someone to make a personal introduction.
The question is whether we're finding ways to reach people who might never attend something we organize ourselves.
One Thing to Try
Look at the three places where you currently spend the most time or money on visibility, networking or outreach. For each one, answer four questions:
- Why are we there?
- Who did we hope to reach?
- Who are we actually reaching?
- What has come from being there?
Then consider whether each activity is accomplishing what you intended. Is it worth continuing? Could you use the opportunity differently? Or would your time and resources be better spent somewhere else?
And what about the people you're not meeting in any of those places?
Where else could you be spending your time to reach them?
Sources & Further Reading
Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne's Three Tiers of Noncustomers framework encourages organizations to look beyond existing customers toward people who are lightly participating, consciously rejecting an offering, or have never considered it. Three Tiers of Noncustomers — Blue Ocean Strategy
The Ehrenberg-Bass Institute's research on Mental Availability and Category Entry Points examines how brands become easier to think of in relevant buying situations and what thoughts bring buyers into a category. Identifying and Prioritising Category Entry Points — Ehrenberg-Bass Institute