The best business decision of 2014

In May Xander Marketing turns 6. From setting up in the worst recession in living memory, to getting through the first year (and the next 5!) we’ve learned a lot about business, marketing and, well ‘life’.

We’ve made a lot of decisions about developing our business along the way, some better than others, with some great successes and the odd failure. However, there is one success that stands out above all the others…

Our best decision

In late 2013 we launched a sister brand – Xander Marketing – Xander Marketing. There were a few reasons behind this:

• To date, our biggest clients had been SaaS businesses, we knew the space well and had some strong case studies in this industry
• We love technology and are good at simplifying complex technical solutions
• SaaS is a clearly defined and rapidly growing segment of tech and marketing is a key service SaaS businesses need to propel themselves forwards

However, the biggest reason was that Xander Marketing is a generic business and this opened us up to a much wider and more competitive marketplace. As an agency we often advise clients on the importance of differentiating from their competitors. By targeting a niche we took our own advice, became a specialist in a competitive market segment and gained a strong point of focus for our business.

How did we do it?

We started slow – a basic website using the ‘lean start-up’ methodology, and some Google Ads campaigns. A couple of test email campaigns followed and when that started to yield results we started doing more: a new logo, website, more content and more marketing for that brand. It took a year, but by September 2014 Xander Marketing had a full website and inbound marketing set up.

And it’s working – in the last year, 50% of new clients have been SaaS businesses. The majority – or perhaps even all of them – would not have chosen us if we hadn’t created Xander Marketing. It’s given us a focus on clients where there is a good fit, who we hire and what we learn.

As we move forwards there will be more of a focus on Xander Marketing, however this will be in parallel with Xander Marketing – that generic expertise has served us well working with clients on projects ranging from multi-million pound infrastructure solutions in post-conflict zones to pop up children’s playrooms.

What are the key takeaways?

• If you are in a commoditised industry think how you can specialise in a niche to develop a USP
• Targeting a niche gives you more focus, and ‘thought leadership’ positions
• You don’t need to dive in – start small, test and if it works keep building it step by step

Do you need help figuring out what your niche is or where to specialise? If you do, or need marketing support, why not request a free consultation from Xander Marketing.