Introduction
Let’s be honest. The core factors of a “business ecosystem” are certainly not new ideas and have been described before in terms like “networks” or “clusters”. These terms refer to the related group of organizations — suppliers, distributors, customers, competitors — which are brought together in economic interaction surrounding a shared core technology platform. Here, we divide these factors into what we're calling the 5C’s: Company, Customers, Competitors, Community, and Collaborators.
So why the new buzzword? The key distinction in the term “ecosystem” lies in its understanding of the interplay between these various factors; specifically the bigger picture view of the ecosystem as a force greater than its parts.
We remember the huge boom in communication and globalization surrounding the Internet revolution of the mid-1990s. This is where business “networks” can be said to have evolved into business “ecosystems”. This biological term is more apt to describe the rapidly-shifting pressures and interactions exchanged within a globalized community. It suggests the larger sphere of influence a single organization can project beyond itself.
In this age of information, it is essential to have a well-informed understanding of the factors within your ecosystem, how you interact with these other factors, and how to utilize knowledge of this ecosystem to extend your influence. When you cultivate your ecosystem, you strengthen your own business along with those of your customers and collaborators.
Our 5C’s framework will assist you to understand your business’s location within its ecosystem and your relationship with influential factors. With this understanding, you can create a digital strategy which leverages your group’s strengths while differentiating your service from competitors’ and tap into appropriate consumer markets.
Company
You are the center of your own web of influence within your ecosystem. By considering your strategic priorities, brand positioning, market activities, and the way you are structured to interact with outside factors in your ecosystem, you can shape a campaign that compliments your position in the market and internal strategies. A few key things to explore:
What are your goals for the upcoming year or business cycle? Specifically where will your growth come from? New or existing customers? What type of products or services will be most essential?
Analyzing your ambitions, upcoming projects, and sources of new growth will help you craft digital and social media strategy which fits with and supports your company’s natural direction. Knowing whether to emphasize customer acquisition or retention will create a digital strategy that taps into your desired consumer base. Finally, consider how your projects will interact with the larger ecosystem of customers, collaborators and competitors. Which digital media tools and strategies will give these projects maximum support?
Why do customers choose your group? What problem do you solve for them? When are you not the right solution?
Unfortunately, most of us still can’t do everything, and understanding your position in your business ecosystem means knowing what does and does not lie within your skill set. If you know which problems your group is expert in solving, your company can differentiate and define itself within the ecosystem effectively.
How is your company structured? Who has contact with prospective clients? Who do clients work with during the course of their lifespan? Who are your thought leaders?
The individuals in your company who work directly with clients and collaborators are the effective public face of your company for the rest of the ecosystem. Crafting these individuals and groups to mesh well with the larger ecosystem is the first step in a winning ecosystem strategy. Your “contact people” should have a clear understanding of your company’s role and goals as related to the larger ecosystem. Identifying and positioning your “idea people” is essential to optimizing this public interface.
Customers
Getting a bigger-picture view of your customers is the first step in making pro-active choices for your product rather than simply reacting to market forces. Why is your product useful to your customers? Who are their customers, competitors and collaborators? What else in the ecosystem affects demand? Which digital media strategies will be effective with your target demographics? The answers to these questions will help you to anticipate needs and trends.
Who is your buyer? In what capacity are they seeking your service?
If your customer is a supplier or a subgroup of a larger company, it’s important to understand the whole picture of how your product is used in their business. If you know what generates demand for your product, you can direct digital strategy and future development.
If your customers are individuals acting on their own, consider their demographic and why they need your product. Your customers often represent interests other than their own and good branding will understand all factors influencing consumers’ behavior.
Who influences their decisions?
Why does a customer choose your product and why does a potential customer choose a different product? Clearly, your own company’s marketing strategies influence these decisions, but let’s not forget that there are influences outside your control. Is there a core technology or outside product that affects the demand for yours? Don’t be shy in cultivating relationships with other factors in the ecosystem that influence a customer’s decisions. These relationships could come from direct business partnerships or indirect digital strategy.
What questions do they ask you?
A customer’s questions are very telling of their concerns, goals, and needs. Considering these questions from an analytical perspective will allow you to craft digital strategies to anticipate these needs and concerns. Impress potential clients with your understanding of their perspective in the ecosystem by answering their questions before they’re asked!
Which customers are your best advocates? Do you have testimonials from them?
Remember that customers do more than just give you money! Satisfied clients can be your greatest allies in establishing productive relationships within your ecosystem. No other form of PR comes across as more genuine than a positive “real person” testimonial. Design digital strategy that prompts and incorporates customer feedback.
Competitors
The savvy business person knows that competitors are more than just rivals; they are valuable models and motivators. Competing companies hold their influence within the ecosystem because they are succeeding in meeting customers’ needs and desires and effectively converting them to their product. Understanding their dynamic in the ecosystem will help you optimize your own.
Who are your main competitors? Why do people choose them instead of you? What do you do better than they do?
Spot out your big competitors based on how much of the market their product shares with yours and how many of their target customers are also your own. Identify specific reasons why a customer converts to a competitor instead of you. This is where consumer surveys and statistics show their merit! Look for trends surrounding accessibility, product awareness, reputation, service, cost. Now consider the advantages of your product and imagine the selling point. How would you convince this competitor’s customer to think, “Hey, this other option is the one for me!”?
Which competitors do you aspire to be like?
Nothing wrong with a little healthy envy. Again, if they’re converting well, there’s a reason. Consider specific aspects of these competitors, like details of their service, branding, public outreach, how they encourage retention. What tactics make these effective? But don’t lose the holistic view of their interaction with the larger ecosystem. How does their community and network of collaborators support them and how does your competitor nurture this support?
Collaborators
If your business interests align, why shouldn’t your marketing? We’ve talked about extending your company’s influence beyond its direct connections within the ecosystem, and this is one place where that influence can become truly far-flung. Make your collaborators your digital media strategy allies and watch your visibility and branding expand beyond what your company could achieve on its own.
Who are your suppliers, partners, and other collaborating parties?
If you have a business or creative relationship with them, the collaboration is pretty clear. But which of these are the best candidates for digital strategy collaboration? Consider what your collaborators bring to the creative table and how this enriches what your own company can achieve. Collaboration between different methods creates friction which can lead to some spectacular creative sparks. Look for teammates who compliment your group’s strengths — find that “creative abrasion” and treasure it.
Which ones are your best advocates?
Start off with a solid foundation — spot out the good collaborator relationships your company has already cultivated and then capitalize. Who has the best understanding of your company’s mission and methods? Who already has an effective digital strategy and can add their momentum to yours? How can you best reciprocate digital strategy collaboration? Identify which of your collaborators stand to gain the most from digital strategy collaboration with your company. Chances are these will be your closest allies.
Community
We know that ultimately, the business ecosystem is made up of individuals who have family, friends, and connections within their communities. Show that your company has its finger on the pulse of the larger community and is invested in its wellbeing. Community involvement is essential to establishing good branding and customer relations, and specialized digital strategies are essential in this aim.
What are your existing sponsorships?
Follow the money! Sponsorship is an effective tool for demonstrating direct support of groups or programs within your community. Consider your consumer base when choosing sponsorship candidates. How visible are your current sponsorships to target consumers? Does your relationship with the sponsored organization contribute to your company’s public image? Look for parts of your target audience you need to reach through new kinds of sponsorship exposure.
What are the key events in your communities where you have a presence?
Identify major community interactions which you can highlight to the benefit of your company. Consider both what your company does as a whole and the activities of individual team members. Community involvement allows you to build a brand for your company as well as spotlight individuals to show your human identity. How do your associates interact with their community on their own time? Demonstrate your group’s intrinsic, self-motivated interest to collaborate and cultivate and you will win the public’s trust.
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