The world of businesses stand to be more fun and profitable if they hadn’t undergone a product ecosystem bypass. But sadly, most businesses focus on a single service/product causing frustration along the way.
People have no end of excuses for this bypass. It’s more important to make money right now, I have too many ideas or I don’t want to speak to my customers.
Creating more depth into one particular niche won’t help, right?
Incorrect. The days of context are here.
Breadth and depth will be required. Why? Because content creation is becoming increasingly cheaper to make. Some people call it “democratized” as in anyone can be involved in the process.
What would stop someone from buying this one product or service?
This is the question to ask yourself. Because people who don’t create a product ecosystem fail to see the point of view of a buyer.
An obvious generic offer with an ecosystem signals:
- Low conviction about the product. The team behind it might not improve as fast as needed.
- The product may not exist. So why bother investing time if a prospect can find more information about it or its creator?
As desirable as it is to start making money, remember you are making something for human beings.
You need to see how people view a product offer
There’s a critical study every business owner should know called Zero Moments of Truth. It’s original research by Google in 2011 that explores how consumer behavior has shifted with the rise of digital.
The study found that the traditional marketing funnel is outdated, as customers now do extensive online research, reviews, and comparisons before making a purchase decision—this is the “Zero Moment of Truth.”
In other words people gorge on information before making a purchase. They track and seek to find as much information as possible before making a purchase.
The way people usually buy:
- They discover you through an online search or social media
- They land on a lead magnet (often from the content itself)
- They start to perform investigative research about who’s behind the thing 4. They either find you or discover the sound of crickets 5. They leave your idea behind or come back curious
You do this yourself, I am sure of it. How many times have you done an online search and video investigation before making a purchase of something of value to you?
You can’t do this without a product ecosystem as this system is breadth based.
This is both good and bad for you as a business. Let me show you.
The Good Parts about Value Creation
Let’s start the party on a good note with its benefits. For starters:
Increased revenue
Everybody want that right? You do, your family does, even your piece of mind does too. Brand loyalty, repeat sales, and cross-selling opportunities are a part of this bargain. It’s this way because you continue the customer, business relationship.
The continued problem solving of their journey derives handsome profits for you.
You will be JUST profitable enough if you do one particular thing well. No surprise here, it’s not a charity. But it will never be a ground-breaking financial difference.
Invaluable data insights
Anyone with an internet connection and some form of a computer (like your phone) can start building on this value escalation framework.
Yes, even if you are in the trades or perform a service. Don’t believe me? Look at the plumbers who gain organic leads from a day-in-the-life videos and maintaining active Youtube channels. Doctors who film themselves at work telling insightful stories about their experiences within their field.
What this all points to is the need to capture data about what’s working. Something resonated to someone if your content is bookmarked or shared. Which led to making more of the type of content. Which could lead to answering an unmet need through your service.
Again, this isn’t doable if you focus on never making an ecosystem. How could it be so?
An ecosystem creates assets
To become differentiated and own a business is to own assets. An asset, simply stated, is anything that generates value without you having to explain it or require your involvement. So those unpublished manuals on your hard drive aren’t assets. Neither are those unedited videos you haven’t’ gotten around to.
You don’t have to make custom software because all of those tools exist. The tools need your insights, your opinions, and your direction to give it life. The people who fail to understand the distinction between tools and assets, are the ones struggling to run a business. They don’t know the difference between pots and pans versus a Michelin star rating.
Assets ultimately make this inherit value called positioning. The KPI is strange as you can’t necessarily quantify it.
When someone says “it gives you wings”, “I’m Lovin’ It”, or “think different”, what comes to mind?
What’s the total value of that? I don’t know. But it’s not nothing. And it wouldn’t be possible without a product ecosystem.
It’s a little difficult to “think different” if you own a sleek computer casing minus the software that enables it. In the same light, your brand isn’t just your website but how it’s experienced by others.
The Less Good Parts about Value Creation
We’ve gone through the good parts but now for its drawbacks. Few things in life have little drawbacks and ecosystems are one of them.
It’s slow to build.
It does not favor speedy immediate returns but a slow cooking process. Those seeking a speedy returns will be disappointed. It requires effort in finding where you stand and how to make the communication process more seamless. Businesses aren’t built in a vacuum so finding gaps will be easier for those currently established.
However, this effect will be exaggerated if you’re a professional newcomer as you’ve yet to build tangible experiences. That’s not to say you shouldn’t publish your content online.
Because everyone in this world contains unique set of intellectual property that no ones has other than you. Find what it is and share it.
As an employee, specialization might be less useful and could require up-skilling.
No longer are the days of being siloed with heavy abstraction coming from higher ups. No longer are the times where you scoped your work to only your domain.
You must develop a holistic approach to product and business development. Find who are the stakeholders of what you do and seek to understand them. As I mentioned earlier, the days of breadth and depth are here.
Context is critical and more so with AI becoming a mainstay in the workflow.
As an employer, finding people who understand the whole will become increasingly more desirable.
More and more I find the need for people to do more than they have been accustomed to do in previous years. As an employer you will need to be realistic since no everyone can do the job of multiple people. You can’t expect a software developer to act as an entire IT department.
But you will need to favor more individuals who possess a “product based” background. It’s hard to say what that looks like but indicators such as people:
- Who have experience working with different departments
- Who have published online content because clear writing is clear thinking
- Who have created something for the masses and received feedback or use on it
Don’t see people who are creating an online personal brand as a threat to their dedication to you.
On the contrary, it might be what saves you in the future. The future is distribution based and partnering with someone who understands this will be of mutual benefit. Even better, having someone on your team who already owns a key piece of distribution.
Dependency risks.
If one part of the ecosystem underperforms terribly, it may impact perception of what it offers elsewhere. The utility of the other products will come into question.
Plainly stated, a hierarchy is interconnected and a weak link means penalized outcomes.
- Can’t capture data by making free content? Miss out becoming known & liked, and the ability to obtain first-party insights
- Can’t diagnose people’s problems? Spend endless days in frustration why you can’t close a sale.
- Can’t make a core product? You have no business
- Can’t make product for clients? You’ll find yourself just profitable enough but never quite financially free
The downstream effect will be lowered customer lifetime value (CLV). No need to try out other products if first impressions were rather poor.
Take note where you shine and where it can improve. The above is more nuanced but most people can tell there’s a deficiency somewhere.
Operational costs will definitely increase as your business scopes outwards.
As stated previously, you want to make profits and those come from a sustained relationship between you and a client. This sustained communication will come at a cost – be it time based or money. It’s part of doing business. More and more people will demand support, message you, submit requests, and become peculiar in doing so.
You can’t do everything yourself. Managing a product ecosystem effectively leads back to the slow building process. Hiring, outsourcing, scalable systems, SOPs, etc. you name it.
Does this mean a high workload and doing work to a high standard?
Yes but you can be iterative about it.
The future belongs not to those who move fastest or shout loudest, but to those who build the most valuable, interconnected experiences for their customers. In this context, a product ecosystem isn’t just a nice-to-have – it’s becoming a prerequisite for long-term business success.
The question isn’t whether to build an ecosystem, but how to build one that creates sustainable value for both your business and your customers. The journey may be challenging, but the alternative of remaining isolated in a connected world is far riskier.
Feeling stuck? I made a FREE online tool for you to use to create a product ecosystem. You can use it here.