How One Local Business Does it Right….

Walking through the dusty gravel parking lot lugging my 2 heavy canvas bags chock full of fresh cucumbers, green leaf lettuce, Napa cabbage, string beans, nectarines, apricots and lots of other summer garden delights I pondered how Larry’s Produce, my favorite local summer institution, has built a business breaking one of the biggest rules of Marketing:  making it easy to do business with you. 

About a year ago I wrote a blog about choosing Starbucks over Peet’s- not because of the coffee (I prefer Peet’s coffee) but because of internet access and the ease getting what I want from the experience. The point of the blog was making it really easy to do business with you so as not to give would-be customers a reason not to do business with you. During this visit to Larry’s I realized, not every business has to eliminate every single obstacle. And then I wondered why. 

Larry’s is a small, somewhat out-of-the-way shack-like open structure produce stand that draws what seems like every single person within a 30 mile radius 6 months a year.

Easy Parking…. ? Not!

Larry’s doesn’t have easy parking – in fact on weekends you have to park quite a ways down the road because the small gravel parking lot is too small to handle the magnitude of cars. Larry’s doesn’t furnish fancy shopping carts – just old wheelbarrows or maybe a dirty white pail; you’re better off bringing your own canvas bags to tote your stuff around in. No they don’t take credit or debit cards – it’s cash or check only. And the summer-job high school students who ring you up aren’t  trained to be overly-peppy and ask (and pretend to care) what you’re making for dinner (ala Raley’s), they just politely ring you up and wish you a nice day… most of the time. 

Lots of Advertising and Promotions… ? Not!

I’ve never seen Larry’s advertise. I’ve never seen their name on the local little league park fence or on an “adopt a highway” sign. And yet, year after year, I’ve watched the crowds get larger and larger, the parking lot overflow,  cars spilling out onto the sides of the country road and neighboring homes’ driveways (some have even had to barricade the driveways to keep Larry’s customers out). 

Breaking the Rules…? Maybe, Maybe Not.

So what is it about Larry’s that allows them to break the rules of Marketing and still be such a huge success? It’s simple really.  Larry’s does one thing and they do it perfectly: they provide a huge variety of the freshest, most delicious, mostly local, summer and fall produce at amazing prices.  There are other produce shops around that try to compete, but there is just no comparison.  Larry’s has never – in 10 years – failed to deliver exactly what I go there for; fresh and delicious local produce, great prices, great variety and a very local and off-the-beaten-path experience . 

Worth the Extra Steps… ? Always!  

So is Larry’s totally easy to do business with? Not really. I have to remember to grab some cash or my checkbook before heading out there – and I never carry either, so it’s an extra trip to the ATM.  I have to remember to grab my canvas bags so I have something to carry my goods in as I shop. And I have to fight crowds and long lines in 90+ degree heat;  and yet for more than 10 years, I’ve shopped there religiously, at least once per week every month they’re open. I’m sad to see them close and anxious for them to open again in spring. Every year, around late May I start making the extra trip out there to see if they’ve put out their sign telling us –  their anxious and eager public –  when they’re opening for the season.  

So, this little farm produce stand on a 2 lane country road has built a booming business by very simply understanding their niche and by being the very best at what they do. They have created an institution, and an insanely loyal following based on a product and an exprience that is true and 100% Larry’s.  They are a testimonial to the core of marketing and business success: offering a superior product or service at a great value can be a differentiator – if you do it perfectly.  

What is the one thing you do absolutely flawlessly that keeps customers coming back? Will your customers go out of their way to do business with you? How can we all get the kind of loyalty and following that Larry’s has gotten? I’d love to read your thoughts….

I read a great article on Biznik this week by Kaya Singer, a Business Coach in Eugene, Oregon.  It’s about one of my favorite marketing topics – Target Market – and it’s entitled, “Now that you have a niche, how do you grow your business from this place?”   In the article she offers a niche-assessment tool that is extremely helpful for growing any business.

Anyone who has spent more than 5 minutes with me knows I’m a fanatic about identifying a target market for your business. I probably told you, “You simply can’t be all things to all people- or at least you can’t do all things for all people well. You need a target market!!!” In my blog, “Anyone Who is NOT a Target Market” I wrote about how much this concept scares most small business owners.  When I say, “target market” they hear, “There are a zillion potential customers out there she’s telling me to ignore… this woman is crazy!”  The fact is whether you know it or not, and whether you choose to believe it or not, your business serves a niche, one tiny little segment of the market, better than any other.  And you, your business and your customers will be better served if you recognize and focus on it.

I love Kaya’s article because she clearly understands the challenge of trying to help small business owners understand the importance of defining a target market. I felt an immediate kinship; I know her ears have ached from the same fearful cries of the “my- target-market-is-Anyone-Who-“small business owner.  I immediately recognized a sister, comrade and fellow marketing crusader, on the same journey to save the planet one small business at a time.  

 But alas- my fellow marketing crusader and compatriot has a solution! (A brilliant one by the way, and I’m quite PO’d I think of it myself!).

 So check this out, Kaya developed a really quick 3 minute “niche assessment”  that you can take to determine whether you’ve  whittled down your target market enough or need t go back to the drawing board and do some more whittling.  I encourage you to check out her article, take the assessment and use it to make sure you really do have a target market.

I just turned down an opportunity to work on a start-up project. The project’s creator thinks the idea is brilliant and it’s going to bring me a ton of business. Yes the idea is great, however the model and the plan for getting it off the ground goes against the very core of what I practice and coach. Yet, I still considered it –  for a minute (ok,, maybe a few minutes…). 

I bet you’ve been there too. 

I’ve seen it over and over again throughout my career with tiny solopreneurships  and larger multi- million dollar  companies:  a prospect comes along with either deep pockets or the promise of more future business and we bend over backwards to try to make our business model fit their needs. And time and time again I’ve seen these jobs completely fall apart. It’s a bad fit from Day One and the relationship is doomed from Day One: nothing works as it should, mistakes abound, resources are stretched and margins dismal.  We’ve all been there.

  3 Signs You Should Say “No”:

 1.       It goes against your business model. Your  business model “describes the rationale of how your company creates, delivers and captures value.  This model captures the core of your business, including purpose, offerings, strategies, infrastructure, organizational structures, trading practices, and operational processes and policies” (definition from Wikipedia). If a prospect comes along with a project or job that compromises any of these things; run in the opposite direction.

 2.       It’s outside your core area of expertise. You do one thing better than anything else – whether it’s delivering a product, service, or a combination of the two. You market it, promote it and talk about it wherever you go. But it never fails; someone will always come along and ask you to do something outside your area of expertise because to them, it all looks like the same type of work. “Well if you can fix my plumbing you can fix my electrical too – it’s still a part of my house”. Think of it this way:  Would you ask a Baseball Coach to Coach a Football team? Of course you wouldn’t so why would you try to do something you are not absolutely 100% professionally skilled and qualified to do? It’s a recipe for disaster. Don’t do it.

 3.       You don’t feel right about it. Bottom line; trust your gut. If the idea of working with this new client is keeping  you up at night or gnawing away at you, there’s a reason. Walk away.

As business owners – especially during these tough economic times – we can be tempted to take any job that comes our way. But the fact is we serve one niche, or deliver one product, service or a combination of the two better than any other.  In order to serve our customers, our company and ourselves best we need to stay true to that.  Keep this in mind: never compromise and your business, your brand, and your reputation will be stronger for it.

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