The Sins of Lateral Marketing...
I met a single mom at a writer's bootcamp. She regaled me with stories about writing books on frugal cooking, life inside a cult, a mystery novel, and romance novels. They were all different markets so I suggested she select a single topic - and spin off intermediate and high-end products - before jumping into another market.The example I cited was Harry Potter. J.K. Rowling writes sequels and is raking in multi-millions of pounds in royalties from movies, DVDs, memorabilia, etc. The secret to her success is she returns to the Goose that Lays the Golden Egg.Which was the opposite direction my writer friend took...She was going lateral instead of deep. A costly mistake. She spread herself too thin. She wanted to launch too many business ideas without owning a successful single model.Because she's a writer, she wanted to write on various topics she was passionate about. Big mistake if she wanted to collect royalties and make a serious living. It will eventually become her achilles' heel.And that's because the marketplace can't decide what brand she brings to the table. It's more profitable and rewarding to position herself in one area of expertise. Something she'll be known for.What happened next?Her first paperback became a money pit. The e-zine she published went dysfunctional, and then revived—but is currently headed in ten different directions. Her website promoting her copywriting service was never completed.