Mostrar mensagens com a etiqueta nichos. Mostrar todas as mensagens
Mostrar mensagens com a etiqueta nichos. Mostrar todas as mensagens

quinta-feira, fevereiro 15, 2024

"Niching up"

"And it gives us the foundation to kindly recommend alternatives to people who aren't in our group. Instead of hustling for more, we're focusing for better."

Este trecho final de "Niching up" de Seth Godin é muito interessante. Seria tão bom que mais empresas o percebessem e não procurassem ser tudo para todos, perdendo o poder da diferenciação.

Seth Godin desafia o conceito tradicional de “niching down”, que envolve estreitar o foco de um projecto para atrair um segmento de mercado específico. Em vez disso, propõe o conceito de “niching up”, que enfatiza o foco num público menor e mais específico para melhorar a qualidade e o impacte do projecto.

O autor sugere identificar o menor grupo de pessoas necessário para sustentar um projecto. Isso envolve entender o que esse grupo específico tem em comum, seus desejos e o que sentiriam falta se o projecto deixasse de existir. Ao atingir esse público específico, o projeto pode ser mais personalizado e significativo. Ao focar num público menor, há uma responsabilidade maior no projecto para atender às necessidades e expectativas específicas deste grupo. Esta abordagem focada provavelmente terá um impacte mais significativo, pois atende às necessidades específicas do público escolhido.

Recordar que isto se encaixa no que publicamos ontem em Outra coisa que me faz espécie, empresas mais pequenas, trabalhando para nichos conseguem libertar mais valor acrescentado.

Recordar o que temos escrito sobre o "anichar" nos últimos anos - Niching down. Seth Godin também escreveu para mim.

segunda-feira, agosto 14, 2023

Mongo e o "Bud Light Fiasco"

O planeta Mongo da série de banda desenhada Flash Gordon é o lar de várias tribos e reinos com culturas, tecnologias e sistemas distintos. Da mesma forma, a economia pós-século XX é marcada pela complexidade e diversidade da oferta e procura cada vez mais atomizada e apaixonada. Foi disso que me lembrei em 2007 para criar uma metáfora que dura até aos dias de hoje (A cauda longa e o planeta Mongo).

Seth Godin usa uma imagem interessante, o século XX via os clientes como plancton, uma massa homogénea. Eu vejo o século XXI como o tempo de Mongo, ou do Estranhistão, terra de Um número infinito de nichos.

Em Novembro passado escapou-me este artigo sobre Mongo, "Strategy in a Hyperpolitical World":

"So what does that mean for strategy?

We define strategy as the art of making informed choices in a competitive environment. Choices are important when differing paths lead to differential risks and rewards. When the social environment is broadly favorable to business, a company's strategic choices can be justified in purely business terms or, as necessary, finessed with carefully crafted press releases. Today, however, choices must be made on an expanded playing field. They are often complex because the underlying ethical, social, and political issues are constantly evolving and defy simple analysis. To make and implement the best strategic choices in this environment, leaders will have to (1) develop robust principles to guide strategic choices, (2) address ethical issues early, (3) consistently communicate and implement their choices, (4) engage beyond the industry to shape the context, and (5) learn from mistakes to make better choices."

Entretanto, há dias li "The Strategy Lesson from the Bud Light Fiasco": 

"A company’s goal should be to present an offering — supported by compelling messaging — that has advantaged appeal to the biggest circle possible. That may be a relatively small circle — Red Bay Coffee — or a relatively big one — Starbucks Coffee. But it should be as big a circle as the offering can support.

The Temptation

In pursuing the biggest circle supportable, companies are forever tempted to send different messages to different parts of their audience — whether inside or outside the confines of their current circle — in an attempt to strengthen and/or enlarge their circle.

...

this kind of thing is getting ever more dangerous with ever increasing transparency,

...

In this age of fuller transparency, brands must think a lot more thoroughly and carefully about the heterogeneity of their Where to Play (WTP), which hangs together now and produces their current market share. But under its apparently calm surface, that overall share hides fault lines — those customers aren’t all the same even if they buy the same product. If a brand isn’t careful, it can take those fault lines that lie benignly beneath the surface and turn them into giant fissures with its actions.

...

The naïve idea — not an unusual one but naïve nonetheless — was that Bud Light could keep all its current customers, and, with this terrific new message, could appeal to some new ones (whether light users or non-users). This kind of naivety has always been dangerous. But it has gotten a lot more so in this hyperpolitical and transparent world.

The Particular Challenge for Broad-Based Companies

It is particularly challenging for broad-based companies and going to get more challenging. The broader-based a company is, the greater heterogeneity its customer base is likely to embody. Every company will have heterogeneity in its customer base. But a giant retailer, like Target, will likely have a greater level of heterogeneity in its customer base than tiny LGBTQ+-friendly clothing retailer, WILDFANG. Ultra Right Beer was launched to woo disaffected Bud Light customers and seemed deliriously happy to hit the $1 million mark in sales. But that is one-five thousandth of the (pre-fiasco) sales of Bud Light. With great size comes more dangerous and pronounced fault lines."

Como não recuar a 2014 e a "-Tu não és meu irmão de sangue!"

O século XX económico (da inauguração da linha de montagem da Ford até à queda do Muro de Berlin) foi um acidente histórico que agora estamos a corrigir, o futuro não é de homogeneidade, mas de heterogeneidade. E mundos heterogéneos não são meigos para com os gigantes. Nunca esqueço: Too big to care.

sexta-feira, maio 05, 2023

De volta a alguma racionalidade ...

Julgo que tenho acertado numa série de previsões ao longo dos anos, mais do que as vezes que falho. Onde costumo falhar é quando se mete o custo do dinheiro. A manipulação do custo do dinheiro pelos políticos, leva a comportamentos irracionais, ou a exageros exuberantes.

Este artigo, "Why There May Never Be a Gen-Z Glossier or Warby Parker", por um lado, veio-me recordar estas falhas, por outro fez-me voltar a Mongo e aos seus nichos.

"Millennial brands kicked off a decade-long direct-to-consumer gold rush, only to watch their prospects collapse with rising interest rates and the end of the pandemic’s e-commerce boom. Now, Gen-Z brands are trying to avoid the same mistakes.

...

If millennial products were known for their sleek packaging in muted colours, their Gen-Z successors tend to go bold, with splashy fonts in vibrant hues and often an intentionally kitschy vibe. Brands like Everlane and Bonobos were for everyone; skincare brand Topicals, swimwear label Raq Apparel and other Gen-Z companies are all about owning their niche.

...

 Gen-Z brands are coming of age in a difficult economy where “free money” is an increasingly distant memory. Investment in apparel and beauty brands fell by 50 percent globally, to $2 billion last year, according to Pitchbook. That figure is on pace to fall another 40 percent this year. And that cash comes with more strings: a clear, and short, path to profitability matters as much as growth.

...

Whether it's by necessity or design, Gen-Z brands may be setting themselves up for a less-bumpy run than their predecessors. Going after niche audiences is a tried-andtrue way to build a business. It's also cheaper - hyper-local Instagram ads and payouts to micro-influencers are more realistic for brands whose backers have them on a tight leash. So is relying on a big retailer for exposure rather than going it alone. Owning a niche can mean better serving customers - such as providing skin care for textured skin prone to flare-ups (Topicals) or producing undergarments for a range of sizes and gender identities (Parade) - to connect with a generation of values-driven shoppers.

...

This young cohort of founders are going to have to do a lot more with less,” said Bill Detwiler, managing partner at Fernbrook Capital Management, which invests in e-commerce brands and software and services firms. “You’re going to see a more resilient class of companies come out of this.

...

Still, investors say Gen-Z brands as a group appear to be scaling at a slower pace, but achieving profitably faster.

...

"The real unicorn in the world today is one that is profitable.""

Volume is vanity, profit is sanity. 

segunda-feira, novembro 28, 2022

Anichar - o medo!

"Every time I've considered niching up, it feels like stepping off a cliff. It's scary at first-what if I don't know what I'm doing? What if I fail? But every time I've taken that step, it ends up being a really positive decision.

Why? Because niching up means moving forward from a place of abundance and growth.

The first thing many people think of when they hear niching is scarcity; they think of having fewer opportunities, of less ability to monetize or grow their business, of taking something away. Many individuals' biggest fear with niching is that by saying yes to one area, they're saying no to many others. It's true: niching does mean saying no to business and shrinking your market.

...

But in reality, niching provides opportunities and gives you optionality. Even after you choose a niche, if you get a lead that’s not where your deep expertise lies, you don’t have to say no. In many cases you will, because it’s not your main focus, but you always have the option of saying yes if it’s an opportunity you particularly want to explore. In some cases, you can genuinely help with something that’s not specific to your niche, so you don’t have to look at it only as black or white, yes or no.

By saying no to some things, niching opens the door to many things—including more or better possibilities.

And that knowledge—that you don’t have to slam the door shut on other business opportunities just because you choose to niche up—takes away some of that fear. 

...

Far from narrowing your options, niching up opens a world of possibility to say yes to the people who are right for you and your business - the ones you are best suited to help."

Recordar "Niching down".

Trechos retirados de "Niching Up: The Narrower the Market, the Bigger the Prize" de Chris Dreyer.

quarta-feira, abril 20, 2022

"that starts the race to the bottom"

 


"the hard, cold facts show that competing in an existing category is a race to the bottom.

If everyone says they are "better," consumers get confused. They assume if everyone says they are "the best" at what they do, the only way to make a decision is to compare.

The first thing they compare is price. And that starts the race to the bottom. It's like watching two prizefighters stand in the middle of the ring and pound the shit out of each other."

Trecho retirado de "Niche Down: How To Become Legendary By Being Different" de Christopher Lochhead e Heather Clancy. 

segunda-feira, março 28, 2022

Lições de Hidden Champions (parte IV)

Parte I e parte II e parte III.

Mais um conjunto de lições a reter dos "hidden champions":

  • Criam os seus mercados através da abordagem e definição do mesmo
  • Trabalham constantemente para manter o product/serviço à frente
  • Usam a escassez como forma de controlar o preço e não tornar o mercado atraente para os gigantes
  • Evitam a diversificação para não se distrairem do que é essencial para o seu mercado.
"Market domination strategies adopted by supernichists or market owners are not easily imitated by normal companies, just as it makes no sense for an average violinist to compete with Anne-Sophie Mutter or Itzhak Perlman. The simplest way for a company to own a market is to create that market itself. Ideally, such a market does not yet exist and is created or defined by the new product. In addition, the uniqueness of the product must be sustainable. Imitation or the establishment of similar markets must be prevented at all costs. The product's outstanding position must be continually renewed and defended over time. Various instruments can be used to maintain a product's uniqueness:
  • Patent protection, 
  • powerful trademark or logo, 
  • intensive relationships and familiarity with customers, and 
  • artistic designs with frequent updates.
...

However, scarcity also means that the supernichists or market owners voluntarily refrain from exploiting their full growth potential. Exclusivity can only be maintained if volume expansion is controlled.

Market owners teach us valuable lessons in relationship marketing. They have been spoiling their loyal customers for years, initiating clubs and collectors' movements long before these concepts were discovered by the marketing literature.
...
Those who enjoy sustained success are wise enough to stay specialized and secretive, and to keep their markets small. These can be important lessons for other companies.
Superniches limit growth opportunities and make the deliberate decision not to grow
...
It is evident that the strong focus of the hidden champions harbors risks. After all, it means putting "all the eggs in one basket." Are the hidden champions too highly dependent on their narrow markets, just a handful of customers, and the business cycles they cannot compensate elsewhere?
...
The hidden champions are committed to their markets for better or worse. The risks of this dependence should not be underestimated. Whether specialization goes too far can only be determined on an individual basis. Focus is simultaneously the foundation of strength and a source of risk.
There are essentially three types of risks:
  • Dependence on one market ("all eggs in one basket").
  • An upscale market niche can be attacked by standard products (risk of losing the premium position).
  • The niche's small market volume or high costs may erode customer acceptance and/or price competitiveness.
...
The hidden champions avoid the risk of distraction from their core business, a mistake that is frequently fatal for diversified companies. The hidden champions rarely sell off businesses. Focus on the core business and the risks associated with it force the hidden champions to keep a close eye on their market and to defend their position by swift reactions to changes in customer needs or to new technological developments. The dependence on their market makes them ferocious defenders and great innovators."

sexta-feira, agosto 27, 2021

Nichos, problemas e ofertas

Interessante ter apanhado este artigo de Seth Godin, "Which problem are we solving?":
"Solving a problem puts value creation first.

Who’s it for?

What problem does it solve?

Would we miss it if you didn’t build it?"

Quando ainda tenho este outro no bornal, "Steve Blank Your Product is Not Their Problem": 

"“So why should anybody in the concrete industry care? Do you really think they’re looking for bacteria made in fluidized bed reactors? Do you think there are a significant number whose number one issue is to buy bacteria? Do you know what if any of the features you mentioned actually matter to a potential customer?” There was silence for a moment. And then he said, “I don’t know.”

I wasn’t completely surprised because as a young marketeer, I made this mistake all the time – thinking that my product was a solution to someone’s problem  – without ever understanding what problems the customers really had. And that I needed to have all the answers when in fact I didn’t even understand the questions."

Este outro também relevante para o tema, "Niching Down For Success": 

"Talk about niching down! She’s found a lot of success focusing on this slice of the wedding market and recommends you get just as granular. 

...

niching down allows you to get really good at the details. ... When you master your niche, you will naturally get really good at recognizing the small but impactful details that make you stand out."

A diferença entre "Think “outcome before output”"



sexta-feira, julho 02, 2021

Trabalhar para nichos mundiais

Na conversa de 116 minutos no Whatsapp no passado Sábado a minha irmã "inglesa" falou-me do livro "Why the Germans Do It Better" de John Kampfner. Ontem, comecei a ouvi-lo:

"It may be global in reach, but it is local in its loyalties. It is one of hundreds of thousands of small and medium-sized enterprises (with turnover of under €50 million and up to 250 workers) in towns across Germany. The Mittelstand employs around three quarters of the country’s workforce and produces more than half the economic output. It is the backbone of the economy and the backbone of society.

...

,,Along with regionalization, family ties and social responsibility, another key aspect of the Mittelstand is its emphasis on specialization. Many of the most successful entrepreneurs find a single product – a particular machine tool or a household appliance. Theirs is a narrow expertise, but they often then end up cornering the global market, focusing relentlessly on acquiring and expanding their customer base, and making sure they stay ahead of the competition.

...

Two statistics stand out. Some 80 per cent of German GDP is derived from family businesses. Two thirds of successful global Mittelstand companies are based in places with fewer than fifty thousand inhabitants.

...

In many other countries in the Western world, industrial and business operations have become very much centralized towards the major cities, whereas in Germany, advanced manufacturing, international footprint and regionalism go together.

Most of all, it is the smaller firms that set Germany apart. The business strategist and author Hermann Simon has coined the term ‘hidden champions’. These are companies, like the ones I’ve mentioned, that devote themselves to a niche. These are success stories of globalization and free trade. The individuals in charge are classic monomaniacs, single-minded and devoted to a single cause or product. They usually shun the limelight."

Falei-lhe disto quando lhe disse qual a receita para as PMEs tugas, nicho com clientes em todo o mundo para ter escala. A velha lição alemã:

sábado, maio 01, 2021

Uma visão para a Fase IV - calçado

Trabalhar no mundo do calçado é trabalhar num mundo de margens apertadas, quase sempre. Podemos não competir com os chineses, mas competimos com turcos e albaneses. (Recordar as 144h).

Neste postal, "Quantas empresas? (parte VII)", escrevo sobre aquilo a que chamo a Fase IV do calçado português:


Continuarão a existir empresas grandes, mas num país com esta dimensão, e com este nível de vida nunca serão muitas. No entanto, a grande massa que sobreviver ou nascer vai ficar mais pequena e terá de trabalhar para ter muito melhores margens.

Escrevo isto e estou, na minha mente, a ouvir o amigo Pedro a retorquir:
- O Carlos quer que a gente se reduza a um ateliê!!!???

Ontem, numa caminhada matinal em Lousada encontrei via Twitter esta peça de publicidade da Microsoft que serve para ilustrar o que aspiro como visão para a Fase IV. E sublinho COMO VISÃO!

"Successful companies do not wait for opportunity — they create it. Case in point: the French glove and protection manufacturer Racer.

Racer has carved a niche creating high-performance gloves for a discerning worldwide clientele of skiers, cyclists, motorbike riders and equestrians. Its team of 25, based in the southern French town of Salon de Provence, produces premium products that are second to none
...
Today, Racer’s challenge is to maintain its focus on high-end handmade products while also innovating to anticipate the needs of its customers. It has to diversify in a way that stays true to its brand values. In recent years, it has harnessed tech to do so.
...
Racer extended its product line with heating jackets and a sportswear range for urban mobility, with a new generation of very discreet, light and stylish helmets. [Moi ici: Isto é o que acontece quando deixamos de pensar em tubagens e passamos a concentrar-nos no desafio de mover fluidos, e mergulhamos no contexto de quem o faz, para lá daquilo que produzimos]

...

Recent developments include heated rehabilitation gloves and protective clothing for the elderly to prevent injuries caused by falls.

Racer has used an ecosystem of local partners on its latest innovations, from the regional workshops that provide the leather and material for their products to the University of Marseille, with which it works on rehabilitation and healthcare products. There is also a move towards reintroducing production in France and offering a repair option, where possible, instead of expecting customers to buy replacement gloves due to the effects of wear and tear."





domingo, março 07, 2021

"The search for a profitable niche market"


"Niche markets are distinct from mass-markets in two important ways. First, niche markets are, by definition, focused and serve consumers with specialized preferences.

...

The search for a profitable niche market begins with the search for less-than-satisfied customers-those whose needs are not being met by existing offerings. In their book, Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind, Al Ries and Jack Trout argue that understanding the customer is the first-step in the battle to create a position in the customer’s mind: “…you have to get off your pedestal and put your ear to the ground. You have to get on the same wavelength as the prospect.”

If listening is hard, making sense of what one hears may be even harder. 

...

What do prospective customers value and why will they buy (and not buy) your product? Theory cannot provide conclusive answers to these questions. The answers must be discovered by experience, experimentation and evidence."

Trechos retirados de "Strategy in Niche Markets"

terça-feira, janeiro 05, 2021

Calçado - Fazer a transição

Em "Rust never sleeps" (Agosto de 2020) usei esta figura:

Em "A fase "wonder"" (Dezembro de 2020) usei esta figura:
E escrevi:
"As empresas de calçado têm de fugir da fase "war" e avançar para a fase "wonder"... "wonder" é magia, é surpresa, é ... arte!!!

Ainda esta semana numa empresa alinhavam-se mentes em torno da relevância dos nichos para o futuro da organização."

Avançar, que neste contexto no mapa de Swardley quer dizer recuar para a esquerda, tal como na primeira figura acima.

Em "Longe do mainstream" (Setembro de 2020)  voltei a citar algo que escrevi em Fevereiro deste ano acerca do sector do calçado português:

"Vamos entrar numa Fase 4

O número de empresas vai voltar a diminuir

A quantidade de pares produzidos vai voltar a diminuir

O número de trabalhadores vai voltar a diminuir

O preço médio por par vai novamente dar um salto importante"

Tenho escrito aqui ao longo dos anos acerca da nichização. A nichização a longo prazo imporá a especialização das empresas que servem cada nicho. O meu velho "Tu não és meu irmão de sangue!"(Setembro de 2014), porque as tribos têm uma paixão assimétrica.

O caderno de Economia do semanário Expresso da passada semana trazia o artigo "Uma têxtil rendida ao colorau" com uma entrevista a Mário Jorge Silva CEO da empresa Tintex:

"colocou a inovação e a sustentabilidade no ADN da empresa para fintar a concorrência, certo de que este era “o grande trunfo e o passaporte para o futuro” da fileira.

“Apostámos na sustentabilidade logo em 1989, muito antes de esta ser uma palavra da moda”,

...

aceitou o desafio lançado por alguns clientes e deixou a têxtil onde trabalhava para lançar o novo projeto cheio de “grandes esperanças” na sua receita assente “na diferenciação e criação de valor, não na guerra de preços”.

...

A procura de uma oportunidade para se diferenciar num mundo onde o verde ainda não estava na moda

...

Hoje, desdobra-se em vários projetos de investigação e desenvolvimento (I&D), em parceria com empresas têxteis e de outros sectores de atividade, centros tecnológicos e universidades. [Moi ici: Trabalhar o ecossistema. Parceiros e fontes de know-how teórico]

...

Outra frente de trabalho prioritária é a área médica,

...

E noutra linha de ação no segmento dos têxteis técnicos e da alta performance promete mais uma solução inovadora para ajudar a recuperação do atleta depois do esforço, lendo indicadores e dando até 13 possibilidades de tratamento em simultâneo.

...

No currículo, apresenta incursões no tingimento da fibra de milho biodegradável e em métodos de tingimento mais sustentáveis e reutilização de materiais, a par de uma série de certificações que garantem reconhecimento mundial na área dos têxteis sustentáveis porque “as pessoas têm de acreditar no que oferecemos”. [Moi ici: Trabalhar o ecossistema. Influenciadores que trazem credibilidade]

“As novas gerações valorizam saber o que compram por isso faz sentido criar nos têxteis uma cultura idêntica à que existe à volta do vinho e dos terroirs"[Moi ici: Muito interessante este conceito. Poderá ser relacionado com Mongo?]

Este artigo pode ilustrar uma estratégia baseada na inovação e concretizada a servir um conjunto de nichos: sustentabilidade; área médica; desporto de alto rendimento. 

Uma crítica que muitos empresários me fazem é a de que os nichos são pequenos, não lhes sustentam a estrutura das empresas. 

1º - Recordar o que prevejo para a Fase 4 - Empresas mais pequenas.

2º - Quando um nicho ainda está na fase "wonder" ainda permite que seja servido por um especialista, não por um super-especialista. Assim, talvez trabalhar para 2 ou 3 nichos ajude a fazer a transição.

quarta-feira, dezembro 23, 2020

A fase "wonder"

Neste vídeo, que já tinha citado aqui, Simon Wardley refere o uso da palavra inovação em diferentes fases evolutivas de um negócio ou de um modelo de negócio. A inovação na fase Genesis, na fase "wonder", não tem nada a ver com a inovação na fase Commodity, nas fase "war":
No entanto, usamos a mesma palavra inovação para as diferentes situações.

O que me faz recuar a Março deste ano onde neste postal, por causa da escrita deste manual, escrevi:
"dei comigo a pensar que a inovação que o calçado precisa nesta altura não é mais do mesmo, não é a “sustained innovation” de que Clayton Christensen falava, e ao qual o fluxograma acima se aplica

As empresas de calçado devem manter e tirar o máximo partido da actividade que conseguem ter através do modelo de negócio actual. Paralelamente, devem criar uma empresa, ainda que virtual, dedicada a desenvolver o negócio do futuro. E para desenvolver o negócio do futuro essa empresa tem de se comportar como uma startup: sem clientes, sem negócios, apenas com hipóteses de produtos e de clientes."
As empresas de calçado têm de fugir da fase "war" e avançar para a fase "wonder"... "wonder" é magia, é surpresa, é ... arte!!!

Ainda esta semana numa empresa alinhavam-se mentes em torno da relevância dos nichos para o futuro da organização. Porquê nichos? 

Onde estão os potenciais clientes/utilizadores apreciadores de "arte", corajosos o suficiente para serem pioneiros e viverem na fase "wonder"? 

A fase "wonder" é a fase de uma intensa relação com o produto.

sábado, setembro 19, 2020

Para reflexão

 "Given how much our culture depends on finding out what’s new, it’s surprising that few have figured out how to be smart about it. If you’re a creator, the truth remains what the truth has been ever since Yahoo tried to sort the web by hand: the best way to make a hit is to build something for the smallest viable audience and make it so good that people tell their peers."

Trecho retirado de "Who is good at discovery?

sexta-feira, setembro 11, 2020

"Niching down"

Ainda esta semana chamávamos a atenção para a importância da nichização, um tema recorrente neste blogue:
Para quem promove o advento de Mongo este artigo, "Why Niching Down Is an Entrepreneur's Best Chance of Standing Out" é relevante:
"Entrepreneurs are always trying to stand out, and understandably so -- after all, there is a lot of competition out there. The need to stand out becomes even more vital in light of the recent Covid-19 pandemic. [Moi ici: Recordar que a pandemia apenas veio acelerar o que já estava em curso]
...
So what's the best way to stand out, especially if your business operates in a particularly crowded niche? The solution isn't to try to go bigger. Instead, it's the opposite.
.
Identifying with more passionate audiences.
.
While it is true that many sub-niches have a smaller potential audience than the broader niche, these smaller segments tend to be more tightly connected. If your product or service is a hit, it is more likely to take off on a community-wide level.
...
Underserved sub-niches tend to have less competition, because many brands deem the smaller market as not being worth targeting.[Moi ici: Recordar a VW e as carrinhas eléctricas]
...
Targeting a smaller niche also gives you the opportunity to reevaluate and strengthen your brand.
...
Mourreau explained that generalist photographers rarely become the best in their niche. Those who focus on a particular subcategory of photography are eventually seen as the go-to resource when those types of photos are needed. Because they have put in the time and effort to develop that particular skill, there is far greater demand for their services than if they had remained a generalist.
.
Niching down gives you the ability to identify your brand's strengths and weaknesses.
...
By shifting your focus to your area of strength, you can continue to develop that ability and be better able to deliver high-quality results for your clients. Satisfied clients will naturally lead to referrals, growth from repeat customers and the ability to charge a higher premium for your services.
.
Finding the right sub-niche for your brand.
.
Not all sub-niches are created equal. Finding the right sub-niche requires evaluating your own brand's strengths and weaknesses, identifying gaps in the market and ensuring that there is a sizable enough audience for you to reach.
...
Shrinking your potential target audience may feel counterintuitive at first. But it ultimately gives you the chance to become a big fish in a much smaller pond. By strategically pursuing the sub-niches that will work best for your brand, you can increase your profitability and better define what makes your company unique."

terça-feira, setembro 08, 2020

Longe do mainstream

Interessante!
Os gurus deste país sonham com empresas grandes que possam ser mais eficientes e produtivas. Recordo o recente "Ignorar uma realidade básica" e o mais antigo "Mas claro, eu só sou um anónimo engenheiro da província".

Neste último postal, de Maio de 2013, cito esta afirmação:
"Há 12 anos éramos 500 pessoas e tínhamos cinco clientes activos. Hoje somos 160 e temos mil clientes activos"
Sintomático que, julgo que em 2018, a empresa de onde provinha esta citação tenha encerrado.

O que é que este consultor anónimo da província prevê para o grosso do sector do calçado em Portugal?

  • Há 20 anos éramos 500 pessoas e e tínhamos cinco clientes activos.
  • Há 7 anos éramos 160 pessoas e tínhamos mil clientes activos.
  • Daqui a X anos seremos 20-30 pessoas e teremos 50 clientes activos.
Recordo a minha previsão sobre a próxima fase do sector do calçado em Portugal, "Quantas empresas? (parte I)":
"Vamos entrar numa Fase 4
O número de empresas vai voltar a diminuir
A quantidade de pares produzidos vai voltar a diminuir
O número de trabalhadores vai voltar a diminuir
O preço médio por par vai novamente dar um salto importante"
Como é que isto acontece? Mudando de modelo de negócio!

Uma das vias que está mais desenvolvida é a da nichização. Contudo, a maioria das empresas ainda não está a diminuir de tamanho porque os nichos são o meu velho fiambre que vem complementar o singelo pão com manteiga. Os nichos são ainda vistos como um complemento.

Entretanto, li um artigo que me sugere outra alternativa para a Fase 4, "The ‘Zero Inventory’ Solution". Sim, trabalhar para marcas da gama alta que assentam o seu modelo de negócio na ausência de inventário.
"Nearly everything sold by Stòffa, a Manhattan-based maker of classic luxury menswear, is made-to-order or made-to-measure.
...
Building such a business takes time and patience. First, they had to establish relationships with manufacturers and suppliers in Italy that were willing to work this way. [Moi ici: Este modelo de negócio não assenta na presença nas clássicas feiras. As empresas portuguesas poderão tirar partido da marca "Made in Portugal" e da sua flexibilidade e rapidez de resposta] Then, they had to build up a client base, which they did through their own networks and city-by-city trunk shows.
...
But it wasn’t until Lever Style began working with newer brands that he transformed the way the company was managed and operated by focusing less on achieving minimums with one large brand and more on servicing many brands in a more efficient manner. Today, 50 percent of Lever Style’s sales come from brands that require quicker turnaround and smaller runs of product. Some of the companies he works with generate just a few million dollars a year in sales.
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Last year, Lever Style’s gross margin was 29 percent; higher than the industry average for a manufacturer that doesn’t have its own consumer brands."


segunda-feira, agosto 03, 2020

Desformatando (parte II)

Parte I.
"Much of the fragmentation is likely to occur in product design and commercialization activities.
This activity depends on creative talent, and creative talent tends to seek the autonomy available in smaller organizational settings. This creative talent can establish much closer connections to their customers and build deeper relationships over time that will help them to deliver more effective personalization and customization, opening up opportunities for customers to participate in the design and creation of the products. These more specialized players will acquire deeper insight into the needs of the highly focused niches they are serving—needs that the customers themselves have a hard time articulating or may not even recognize.
...
[Moi ici: Niche operators] Over time, they should have a greater impact on their domains, competing with large companies by serving increasingly diversified consumer desires and providing personalized, even localized, products and services.
...
As consumer demand for uniqueness or other specialized attributes causes product fragmentation, another type of fragmentation will occur in the retail space, as retailers cater to specific consumer preferences with a targeted set of niche products. A new type of retailer is emerging that uses both physical and virtual facilities to help customers more effectively navigate a vast range of products to find and use those that are most personally relevant. They will increasingly offer targeted experiences to niche customer segments—showcasing products, providing learning environments to help customers get more value from the products, and creating venues for customers to form communities around these niche offerings. This phenomenon is different from more narrowly defined curation services, which simply provide expertise or reviews in a product category.
Increasingly, we will see similar trends across other domains where the barriers to entry, commercialization, and learning are diminishing."

Trechos retirados de "The hero’s journey through the landscape of the future" do Deloitte Center for the Edge" de 2014.



sexta-feira, julho 31, 2020

Desformatando

"The erosion of barriers to forming and pursuing a business venture [Moi ici: A democratização da produção levará a um mundo muito diferente daquele que o século XX formatou] will lead to increasing fragmentation in certain parts of the economy.
...
For individuals and small entities, the barriers to forming and pursuing a business venture are rapidly being dismantled. As barriers fall, many small yet viable players will emerge, with increasing influence on the economy, via three primary pathways:
  • Freelancers, empowered by online staffing platforms, will begin as individual contractors, but will quickly transition to forming flexible teams—colloquially called “hives”—comprised of other freelancers with complementary skill sets. Gradually, these hives will move from just accepting work from other businesses to collectively creating their own products and services, and ultimately forming their own small companies.
  • Hobbyists will transition from “moonlighting”— working full-time for someone else while pursuing their passion projects during off-hours—to being fully dedicated business owners.
...
  • “Star” performers within big companies— confident of their value and frustrated by a lack of autonomy—will increasingly choose to leave employers in favor of building businesses that use their full range of talents.
...
Fragmentation (within a domain) is defined by the following characteristics:
  • Each player within the domain has a small, addressable market and is focused on a specific niche
  • Collectively, players address a diverse spectrum of customer and market needs
  • Both players and niches are proliferating within the domain
  • No single player has enough market share to influence the direction of the domain long term
  • A relatively modest level of investment is sufficient to enter and sustain position
  • Diseconomies of scale” are in play—it is more challenging for large players to stay in business"
Trechos retirados de "The hero’s journey through the landscape of the future" do Deloitte Center for the Edge" de 2014.

domingo, março 01, 2020

Quantas empresas? (parte IV)

Parte I, parte II e parte III.

Na introdução no Linkedin ao postal "Uma lição para as PME portuguesas" escrevi:
"Fugir da corrida para o fundo do poço, fugir da armadilha mental que só interessa aos gigantes. Deixar de vender substantivos e vender adjectivos para nichos."
No referido postal sublinho:
"Instead, they decided to produce milk that could be certified as grass-fed and organic.
...
The price he commands for grass-fed organic milk isn’t double that of regular milk, but it’s close," 
O que é que isto quer dizer para os fabricantes de calçado?

Por exemplo:

  • Deixarem de produzir sapatos para produzirem sapatos de segurança
  • Deixarem de produzir sapatos de segurança para produzirem sapatos de segurança para operar no ambiente X com as condicionantes Y

quinta-feira, fevereiro 27, 2020

Quantas empresas? (parte III)

Parte I e parte II.

Para sobreviver as empresas de calçado vão ter de subir na escala de valor, vão ter de vender os pares de sapatos mais caros.

Uma das primeiras lições que aprendi quando comecei a trabalhar com o sector do calçado em 2009 foi esta:

"Um par de sapatos sai de uma fábrica no Brasil a custar 10€ (fase da extracção de valor).
.
O mesmo par de sapatos é vendido pela marca às lojas a 30€ (fase da captura de valor).
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O mesmo par de sapatos é vendido ao consumidor na loja a 90€ (fase da originação de valor)."
Olhando para a figura acima listemos algumas alternativas de subida na escala de valor:
  1. fabricar sapatos que possam ser vendidos a um preço superior à saída da fábrica porque poderão ser vendidas mais caros na loja;
  2. fazer o by-pass à distribuição e vender directamente à loja, ou ao consumidor final, ou ao comprador final;
Conjugar com o conselho:
Que nichos existem? Que preços são praticados? Que canais de distribuição existem para esses nichos? Quem é quem nesses nichos? (clientes-alvo, influenciadores, prescritores, donos das prateleiras, ...) O que é valor em cada um desses nichos? Qual o papel de ter uma marca? É preciso ter uma marca?

O último postal publicado no blogue, "Estratégia no dia-a-dia", ilustra mais um exemplo de adopção de uma estratégia baseada em nichos, para fugir ao confronto directo com quem vantagem competitiva em outras arenas.

segunda-feira, fevereiro 17, 2020

E se não resulta?

"El sector de la cosmética se lo disputan dos públicos: millenials y selenials. Las primeras, de treinta y tantos, beben de la tecnología y son adictas al maquillaje. Las segundas, mujeres a partir de 50 y que pertecen a la llamada «generación silver», tienen el poder adquisitivo y son las que invierten en productos de valor añadido. Gastan unos 200 euros anuales de media y son las que tiran del sector, «un pilar fundamental para la industria», ya que representan la mitad del gasto, según la directora de Consumer&Market de L’Óreal, Estefanía Yágüez.
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Así lo desvela la consultora Kantar Worldpanel, que ha hecho un estudio sobre el mercado de belleza entre los senior para L’Óreal España. Según sus cifras, las llamadas selenials (mezcla de senior y millenial) acaparan el 47% del gasto en belleza. De los 4.758 millones invertidos en cosmética cada año en España, 2.190 corresponden a este segmento de edad.
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Este fenómeno selenial está «impulsado por una mayor disponibilidad económica, por un aumento del interés por cuidarse y su mayor capacidad de adaptación a las nuevas tecnologías». Es el segmento de población donde más ha crecido el uso de internet. «Se trata de un tipo de consumidora inconformista, con confianza en sí misma, que desea cuidarse y se acepta tal y como es», señala Yágüez.
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En España hay 13 millones de compradores de productos de belleza de más de 55 años, de los cuales 7 millones son mujeres. De cada 10 euros gastados por seniors en cosmética, siete los desembolsan mujeres. Esto las convierte «en el mayor nicho de negocio para el sector».
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Las selenials adquieren cosméticos una media de 22 veces al año, superando los 200 euros anuales. Lo que más compran, según los datos de Kantar, son cremas faciales (el 33%), seguido de perfumes y fragancias (32%) y maquillaje (12%)."
Quantas empresas precisam de descobrir este nicho?
Ainda esta semana cá em casa andaram à procura de calçado para alguém acima desta faixa etária e não é fácil encontrar algo de jeito.

Trabalhar para este nicho, trabalhar para qualquer nicho, implica conhecer o cliente para perceber o que é valor para ele. Não é com design e critérios para jovens que se seduzem selenials.

Quantas empresas estão dispostas a fazer as mudanças que o trabalho para um nicho exige? Parece um bom trade-off? E não há riscos na mudança? O sucesso é garantido? E deitar fora o seguro para abraçar o arriscado? E se não resulta?

BTW, recordar "Anichar".

Trechos retirados de "Las ‘selenials’ sostienen la industria cosmética" publicado pelo El Mundo de ontem.