The problem of product expansion.

For a long time now, I've been watching many websites and I find that when they've been successful at one product online, they invariably expand into other products as well. Is it a good idea to expand into areas or products that you don't have expertise in? Just because you have a vehicle to bring in online sales, should that line expansion be done? I used to believe that it's never a good idea, but I feel that it does make sense in some situations.

For most businesses built on one basic product, say like outdoor recreational equipment, would it make sense for them to expand into gardening? They have some crossover customers and many people that do outdoor recreation might be gardeners as well. I put to you that it doesn't work because it's totally different, a complete difference in expertise. With no competent people to champion the cause, the new gardening idea is probably doomed to failure. People identify a business by what they do and they like to categorize it in their mind. There's a little filing cabinet in everyone's mind where they organize the world around them. This is not an open system, in fact, it's very closed. People desire an ordered world and their way of seeing it isn't changed easily. That's why it's difficult to expand into other areas. A couple of exceptions to the rule are places like Amazon.com or Ebay. These companies expand into areas you wouldn't think would work. The reason they get away with it is that they are perceived as a "get anything for a deal" type place. That is their identification. Most of the time it doesn't work for most companies because they are specialists. It's better to be a specialist in this world than a generalist. There is usually more customer loyalty, higher profits and a long term view. Most companies that have tried to expand have lost even their core business in the end.

Web marketing for the real world, RealWebMarketing.com

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Are searchers loyal to a search engine?

I came across an article about searchers and how they can be a little fickle. This is something to consider when doing Web marketing. People are not always going to use just one search engine, but they might consider using many in order to find what they're looking for. So it makes sense to take a look at how a web site ranks with many different search engines, not just one. I don't think it's so much that people are fickle as they are trying to find the result that they want. Many times they don't find what they're looking for and they'll try anything to find what they want. Once again, it's really about the searching public that drives what people want in search. If Google would stop being relevant, people would quit using it just like they did with many other search engines in the past. This must make some of the search engine's a little paranoid and that's why they're constantly trying to develop the next big thing whether or not the public accepts it.

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