Migrating Your Products and Services Beyond Being a Commodity.
No matter how hard we try, it seems overcoming the stereotype of being the “t shirt guy” is an impossible objective. The perception of being a t shirt company or vendor in the marketplace is huge. Just trying to get your customers to understand what you really do is a challenge. As I was thinking about this, some things began to occur to me.
My first thought was that the perception is reality. No matter how we see ourselves, customer perception of what we do is the real reality. They’re branding or labeling us with this perception. It’s up to us to fulfill that label, or somehow overcome it. Part of this labeling process is the commoditization of what we do. “You’re just another t shirt guy” is tough to overcome as it puts all t shirt printers into a giant group where everyone and every product looks the same. As I’ve said in the past, if you get caught in this trap, the only differentiator is price. That’s a losing game.
Your avenue out of this perception is to provide a logical path. Start with your position the same as everyone else. You can make or beat the lowest price in the market as the starting point. It really does not matter because our intention is to use this as a starting point for the conversation, that’s it. We have no intention for selling shirts for the lowest price in the market.
The key is to have a series of upgrades, steps, or levels. If you’re starting off with a cheap 5.4 oz cotton shirt, the next step up is a 6.0z with better graphics and special effects inks (high density, reflective, gel, etc.) Still not expensive, but something to compare with. Follow this with a more fashionable style like an American Apparel body or a 100% Certified Organic body with waterbase printing. Now you have much more margin and a clear choice that does not fit the stereotype. You’ve navigated away from a commodity to something beyond.
In order to make this transition it’s also important to give the reason why behind the upgrade. The reason why for the point of entry garment is all about being the cheapest, that’s it. It’s where it is because it fits the profile of the commodity. The fashion body is “hip” or cool, and the organic T is good for the environment. The more compelling you can make the story that leads up to the next level, the better chance you have of making the migration.
What you’re after is comparison. If you don’t have higher priced alternatives, you have nothing to compare against and the low end price gets pegged. Offering alternatives with a reason why behind them breaks the link to a commodity and frees you to move up to a higher sales price and higher margin.
August 19th, 2009 at 9:23 am
I really like your blog and i respect your work. I’ll be a frequent visitor.
September 16th, 2009 at 5:00 pm
I totally agree with you on making sure you separate yourself from basic reproduction shops. If you allow your product become a commodity then you will have to undercut prices until your profit is too thin. As a smaller shop we get this all the time because customers know we have less overhead than larger shops.
The same philosophy of levels goes for the design aspect of the business. Customers have to understand what tangible and intangible deliverables they are getting with great design. The hard thing is convincing them to pay for those “intangibles” like brand awareness/recognition that they may or may not value. Getting the time from them to offer the explanation of these things is often hard. Do you have a strategy for that?
May 8th, 2010 at 2:50 am
Awesome write-up, I’m a huge believer in placing comments on weblogs to allow your blog editors know they’ve created something of value to the web!