Rule Your E-Biz Space

When Agency.com went public, its S-1 filing risk section read like an industry trends white paper.

"The market for Internet professional services is intensely competitive, highly fragmented and subject

to rapid technological change. Many of our competitors have advantages over us. There are no substantial barriers to entry into our business. We expect that competition will intensify and increase..."

Ironically, you could substitute just about any company's name and the issues still apply. "Web integrators are doing strategy work. Strategy firms are doing IT consulting. Software companies are beefing up their services arms," notes Theresa Lina, president of The Lina Group Inc., San Francisco. "The Internet has made location irrelevant. Anyone, anywhere can play. In a market full of me-too look-alikes, the question of the day is, 'What don't you do?'"

Lina, author of a series of articles in VARBusiness University (VBU) on "How To Play To Win In Your Space Race," offers these tips on how to avoid being a "me-too" player.

1. Find a common critical business problem that no one is adequately addressing,and solve it.

Instead of being all things to all people, run with your successes. Look at the market you serve. Determine where it's going, what today's unmet needs are and what tomorrow's are likely to be. Poll your clients and partners and try to identify the competitive threats.

2. Segment the market according to common characteristics, such as industry or business function. Look for common problems and patterns, such as culture, behavior, competitive pressures, how readily your clients and partners adopt new technologies, and the role the Internet will play in their businesses and industries. Develop profiles of particularly attractive segments.

3. Examine your own strengths and weaknesses. Look at your goals and objectives. Then begin matching them to your core competencies.

"Market selection is actually a process of elimination," explains Lina. It's as much a matter of identifying the segments you will not serve as it is picking the ones you will. Check out Lina's VBU seminar (www. varbusinessuniversity.com), in which she pinpoints eight market segments you should consider eliminating. n

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