Go deep and a little bit wide with your expertise

General Electric, the conglomerate that once brought “good things to life” and now is “imagination at work,” has changed its management philosophy.

The Wall Street Journal reports that instead of advancing a generation of generalists who, as leaders, know a little about a lot across the company, GE is now hedging its bets that sales will grow if their leaders develop deep expertise.

As a small business service firm or individual professional, you’re not surprised. You know that to thrive and provide the most value to clients, it’s mandatory that you practice in a core area of exceptional expertise.

To illustrate this point: Think how you buy outside services for your business. You most likely look for an expert or company that specializes in a specific function, such as accounting or information technology (IT). Small business owners rationalize that they’re likely to get more targeted expertise and better service from hiring a firm with a singular focus.

But suppose you have competencies and talent in a number of key business functions, or disciplines, and you decide to put it all on the table as managed services, for example. Would it be a case of trying to be all things to all people?

Not if you successfully argue that your company — with its core areas of expertise offered under an umbrella of streamlined, focused services —delivers extreme savings, ROI, and pain relief to specific, targeted classes of business.

To build a story about your offerings that’s a magnet to prospects, create messaging that shows, without doubt, how they’ll be better off when they outsource business functions to your company. And build a separate case for each business function, being sure to articulate how your work with the client will build a better future for them and their business.

Tell your story: how has your business model succeeded with multiple service offerings?

Roberta Guise works with experts, small business owners and professionals who want to be extraordinarily visible and sharpen their marketing edge. She also enables successful women to become thought leaders in their field of expertise. A small business marketing consultant and speaker, she is the founder of San Francisco-based Guise Marketing & PR. If you'd like to know how to apply these concepts to your situation, call for a free 1/2 hour consultation. 415-979-0611. www.guisemarketing.com