A question we're frequently asked is "what's the most effective way of developing a new market?"

In answering this question, it strikes me that entering and developing a new market is a bit like winning the SuperBowl - market development takes hard work, testing, planning, and application of the plan over time. You simply can't expect to start the season halfway through the fourth quarter and expect to walk away with the trophy.

Yet many companies do exactly this when trying to develop a new market!

After a long season of hard work, Tom Brady, quarterback of the New England Patriots, knew he couldn't win the game in the fourth quarter. He also knew that he could establish the groundwork for success long before the final few minutes of the game. He tested his opponent in the first half of the game and put seven points on the scoreboard. Then in the second half, he applied what he had learned and marched down the field for additional touchdowns.

The end of the game, in fact, was rather anti-climatic. We all knew who was going to win perhaps even before the kicker Vinatieri booted the ball over the goalpost mid-fourth quarter. The rest was just the application of what the Patriots already knew - the blocking and tackling that kept their opponent from scoring and helped to wind down the game clock.

Developing a new market also takes hard work. In working with clients to help them enter a new market (or to significantly expand their presence in an existing market), we conduct a well-established five step process:

• We conduct focused primary market research to validate the market opportunity and the "fit" between the prospective customers and the client's product or service. In conducting this research for a medical device company and for a professional services firm in the content management space, we found no market opportunity in their target markets. For other clients, we have identified not only the critical factors for success, but also the profile of the key decision makers and their buying processes.
• We identify the key decision makers and economic buyers. Once we've validated the opportunity and identified the critical success factors, we develop a key prospect list. The key prospect list may include the leading companies in a given industry or market and it may also include the highly visible early adopters who will help to influence others in the same industry.
• We talk with the decision makers at these companies, documenting their key buying criteria, process and timeline.
• We then assemble a larger list of prospective buyers through the purchase of databases and mailing lists. Ideally, we find commercial lists that include both companies and individual contacts, but even with sophisticated database subscription services that cost $10K-$20K or more, we find significant error rates on the order of 20-30% or higher! To build a good clean list that we can market to, we validate contact information for the primary and secondary contacts at each company. (This part of the process most closely resembles Brady's running game - picking up 3-4 yards per effort and gradually moving toward the goal.)
• Finally, we build a closed loop lead management process to ensure that as we do start the marketing outreach, prospects are appropriately qualified and either handed off to sales or retained in the marketing database for further development. Patience in this portion of the process is key - it may take 18 months or more from first contact to contract signing and rushing a prospect will only scare him or her away!

Yet time after time we hear of companies that step into the game in the fourth quarter, throw a single "Hail Mary" pass and expect to take home the trophy. Needless to say, these companies go home empty-handed!

If you want to take home the market development trophy, you need a good plan and the ability to implement that plan. At our upcoming seminar on March 1st, we will explore a variety of demand generation techniques and hear from companies that have been successful in growing their business and entering new markets. We look forward to seeing you there!