Posted By Industrial Web Solutions Marketing Team on August 31, 2010

Same Target Market, New Approach

I feel compelled to continue on the topic of finding new ways to generate revenue when your usual stream is dry. In my last post I talked about the need to Be First or Be Different: How to Stimulate Your Targeted Buyers’ Spending. Innovation is always a good thing. It doesn’t necessarily mean introducing a new product or service but it may. And it may even mean developing a niche within your bigger target market.

Take Barnes and Noble, for example. According to a report by Lauren Indvik, “Nook Helps Drive 21% Increase in Revenue for Barnes & Noble,” the company’s in-store sales – its usual revenue stream – are continuing to decline, at “a loss of 62.5 million for its first fiscal quarter ending July 31^st.” Ouch! However, about 9 months ago the company introduced its portable electronic e-reader device the Nook, of which I am a big fan, and their online sales have “jumped 42% to $145 million year-over-year, exceeding the company’s own expectations.” The company also reports that this revenue stream shows signs of continuing growth, with e-book sales accelerating “week-over-week.” B&N’s Chairman Leonard Riggio says Nook owners “have increased their spending with the bookseller by 17%” and that about “a quarter of these device owners had never before purchased anything from the company’s website.”

Still representative of the products they typically sell, B&N’s Nook presents its target audience of readers with a new way to enjoy their pastime that is convenient, easy-to-use, and cost effective (book prices for new releases range from $9.99 and above; older books are either free or cost from .99 cents to $5.99). So what’s the lesson here? When your usual revenue stream isn’t producing for you, it is necessary to conduct some research to understand what you could introduce, whether it is a product, a service, or a combination of both, that will effectively stimulate your target audience groups to spend. For B&N it is the Nook, which successfully attracts their usual target audience and stimulates them to spend again and again by giving them a good reason to do so.

Somewhat relevant addendum…..

I am a big fan of the Nook. I read a lot. But I am very busy and do not have the time to drive to B&N and hang out like I used to do. Because the unit is portable and makes it easy to acquire books, I tend to do so with more frequency. For example, within 10 days, I downloaded from B&N and read all three of Stieg Larsson’s novels (which I highly recommend because he is an intelligent and brilliant story teller – look up “Girl With the Dragon Tattoo”).  

If you need some help coming up with good ways to develop new revenue streams, our business development and marketing team is ready to work with you.

Categories: business development, industrial marketing, manufacturing, Sales
Tags: b&n, barnes & noble, business development, generate revenue, industrial marketing, revenue stream, Sales