The era of mass production, in all its forms, is nowhere near its end. Customization is, however, very much making a comeback. Even the global megabrands are paying attention. SMBs, however, should be paying even more attention.
Pushing back from mass production
Mass production certainly has its uses. In fact, it’s almost certainly going to be a feature of the economic landscape for a long time yet. It may never die out completely. That said, it also has its limitations. Mass-produced items, by nature, have to be designed to be generic. This means they do a reasonable job in a variety of situations rather than an excellent job in a few situations.
For decades now, consumers have largely accepted this reality as a fair trade-off for the lower prices mass-production can offer. In some environments, that’s still true, at least to some extent. In others, however, consumers increasingly want or need more customized products. For example, as homes have become smaller, the need for customized furniture has grown.
Some of the global brands have been dealing with this by encouraging people to customize their products. For example, IKEA has become synonymous with “IKEA hacks” in other words, customizations, often very creative ones. Others have been encouraging smaller businesses to fill the gaps in their offering. Amazon, for example, has been pushing this approach. This is opening up all kinds of exciting opportunities for SMBs.
That said, teaming up with a giant is far from the only option. You could look at going it alone or teaming up with a similarly-sized partner. For example, if you're looking into customized metalwork designs, you could just team up with a local company offering complete on-site and in-house welding services.
Polishing your supply chain
Before you start moving into customization, or building on your existing capabilities, make sure your supply chain is up to it. In this context, the term “supply chain” means anything you need to deliver your product or service. It can therefore refer to internal supply chains (like workstations or departments) as well as external ones (like partners).
In the years before COVID19, there was a strong trend towards “lean” business with “just-in-time” practices. This was probably most obvious in manufacturing but was definitely a feature of the service-center landscape as well. Post COVID19 that approach is, at the very least, up for discussion.
On the one hand, it’s, of course, sincerely to be hoped that nothing like COVID19 ever happens again. On the other hand, hope is not a strategy, at least not a very robust one. This was demonstrated very clearly when COVID19 disrupted supply chains across the world. Businesses, therefore, have to decide whether or not they’re prepared to risk this again.
There are no right or wrong answers here. It all depends on your perception of risk and your appetite for dealing with it. Your perception of risk, however, needs to be based on solid foundations so do your research very carefully. Then think very carefully about your different options and make your decisions mindfully.
Presenting yourself as an expert
One of the big advantages of moving into customization (or promoting your skills at customization) is that it allows you to position yourself as an expert in your niche. After all, it’s relatively easy to design and produce generic pieces. It’s a lot more challenging to implement customizations or to create bespoke pieces.
Presenting yourself as an expert can do more than simply justify higher prices (although this can be a useful bonus). It can also really help your ability to promote your business. For example, as an expert, you can provide more valuable content than a generalist. This in itself can help you to get more traction on your content marketing.
Crucially, it can also open up opportunities for promoting your business on other people’s platforms without having to pay for the privilege. Indeed, you may even be able to charge them for the privilege of having you deliver your advice. That, however, is only likely to happen if you succeed in establishing yourself as one of the very top experts in your field.
There are, however, still numerous possibilities for people with a lower profile - as long as you can demonstrate some level of expertise. It’s even better if you can keep bringing original content to the table. Keep in mind that most content creators are very much up against the search engine algorithms. They need fresh, unique content to stay at the top of their game.
Pro tip
When you’re looking for ways to promote yourself through third-party content creators, your first thought may be to link up with bloggers. This can be an excellent idea. You should, however, also look out for opportunities to link up with podcasters. Podcasts are now extremely popular and can be a great way to connect with people who don’t tend to read blogs.
Perfecting your customer service
One area where SMBs really can learn from the major brands is the area of customer service. That definitely does not mean copying them. In fact, that can often be the very worst thing you can do. It means acknowledging that the major global brands tend to be highly skilled at maximizing the efficiency of their customer service.
The very top global brands offer customer service which is both highly efficient and highly personalized (or customized). These are the examples you need to follow. The good news is that technology has made it much easier for SMBs to implement effective customer-relationship management processes.
If you’re still hesitant to embrace the digital age then now is the time to learn more about it. While you do, remember that digitization isn’t about replacing humans. It’s about respecting their time. What’s more, there’s often a strong link between respecting your staff’s time and respecting your customer’s time.
For example, if you use technology to automate and streamline basic tasks, your customers will usually get quicker service as a result. It is impossible to overstate the importance of this in modern business. When your customers do need personal guidance, your staff should be less overwhelmed with admin. They should therefore find it easier to focus on the interaction.