I’ve seen so many snowstorms this year that I have lost count. However, the one the other day was the most impressive, not for the drifts or the depth or the wind, but for how it covered every surface with white. The entire landscape was blanketed, much like the methods some companies use to market their products – let no potential customer go untouched by their messages.

This common approach is taken by companies large and small, and usually with similar results. Sure, some sales will result, but efforts to get the customers will be large, and it won’t be clear what part of your offering is the most valuable to them.  You will end up following some opportunities that look exciting but yield few sales.

Though an inefficient process, carpet bombing the marketplace may have some use for very early technology. Sometimes it’s not clear where the best opportunities lie, so you need to explore a variety of applications and markets. This is fine, but must be undertaken as part of a larger strategy – that means exploring specific segments for a limited time. Then decide on where to focus your valuable time, money and efforts.

Crossing this divide between exploration and focus is a tricky one and often leaves a hollow feeling in the pit of your stomach. Here are a few ideas that can help you sleep a little better when you are attempting the move away from the sticky snow approach.

• Spend time to really understand the segments. What are the groups of customers that are attracted to your product? What do they have in common? How do they differ?

• Be sure to look around the corner and not just at the last couple quarters. Having a reasonable idea of what your customers will be needing (and how many of them) is the basis for a believable forecast.

• Understand which message in your blanket of snow is sticking. What gets the customers excited enough to shift from “that’s interesting” to “I need that”

• Lastly and most difficult is sometimes saying no to revenue. Though customer x is very interested in the PCR product you are selling for diagnostics, he wants to look at primordial soup — so you need to walk away. You will need to support this approach across the organization so no one gets crucified for missing a sale.

This is not an easy situation, but a critical one if products are to become truly successful beyond the few dozen enthusiasts who buy anything that is new. Be conscious of the point when focus is needed to really grow the business. Tempting as it is to chase everyone who likes your product, like the wet snow on the trees, soon the excitement will melt away. Before this happens, you need to make the choice on where your future lies.

The success of this blight is quite remarkable and reminds me (in a dark sort of way) of successful businesses and products. The blight’s attributes are truly something to aspire to, although hopefully in a more positive fashion.

• Very clear target – The fungus only kills the American chestnut, not the Chinese, European*, horse or any other. Your products need to be well aimed into the target market segment. The more specifically the customer can be defined, the better your chance for success

• No competition – Nothing short of forest fires and chainsaws affects the chestnut. They are served up for the blight to attack at will. Everyone would like a market like this – customers just waiting for your product with open arms. The proverbial white space.

• Very effective – Pretty much 100% of the trees succumb to this fungus. Similarly you’d like to see all your offerings leave customers completely satisfied and happy.

• Well established – After 100 years of successfully keeping chestnuts from reclaiming their position as a dominant forest tree, the blight continues unabated. This is nirvana for a company – entrenched products that are adopted by all-comers.

However, even something as successful as chestnut blight won’t dominate forever. The American Chestnut Foundation has been breeding resistant varieties that may ultimately leave the blight without willing hosts.

Though this cryphonectria parasitica is indeed devastating, it does give us some lessons for success. And while you strive to achieve the success on the scale of this blight, just keep an eye on the horizon. Market leadership is not forever, though a century is a pretty good run.

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*For inquiring minds: Technically the European chestnut is susceptible to this blight. However, due to infection of the fungus by a hypoviridae virus, the fungus is less virulent and the chestnut trees survive.

After the conference everyone goes home with a bag full of new sales leads or a bunch of literature on must-have products.  The big challenge here is to maintain this momentum and energy after the meeting and avoid letting things just revert to the calm before the wind.

So how do you keep people excited about your new stuff and capitalize on this excitement?  Here are a few ideas.

• First your new products need to solve problems that matter.  Determining the nature of the customer’s problem as well as the product requirements needs to be done far in advance of any launch.  Hopefully you spent the necessary effort here.

• Second since you clearly understand what customers need, you must be able to communicate with them in a way that they “get it.”  Not a lot of jargon and press-release-speak, but honest to goodness frank, simple communication.

• Third and most important you need to keep the high level of excitement in your organization.  I often see companies that launch products, then sit back and assume their work is done, except for order taking.  The launch is the starting line, not the finish line.  Keep your folks excited, make it fun.

After you make big waves in the market with your new product, be sure to keep the momentum.  Like the wind blowing the white caps, keep excitement high and customers will follow.

How does a plant grow from a rock?  I was wondering this as I looked at the black birch seedling sticking out of the hunk of granite.  Looking a little closer I could see that it had a toehold in a small crack, where it was able to summon the ingredients for growth.  This is similar to what happens with many businesses in the life sciences.  If there is a crack or gap in the business or in the customer’s situation, all kind of effort will result.  These cracks are the opportunities for growth.

Granted many of the gaps are self-imposed, but they are still responsible for guiding people’s efforts.  So let’s take a quick look at a few.

• Revenue gaps – If the corporate goals are on the other side of the void, then an acquisition, development of a new product, or improved sales channels will get you across.  If there is a gap at that business unit level, then more near-term, tactical activities will result – increased marketing, sharpening the product strategy, or more hands in the field.

• Customer gaps – When companies determine that their customers are facing a hole in their process, they have a great starting point for new product development.  Often the customer has gaps in their workflow in terms of efficiency, costs, time or performance that can be addressed.  Just look at your favorite new product, and it becomes obvious what gap it is trying to fill.

• Organizational gap – Sometimes the gaps are internal and relate to the company’s’ ability to get its products completed and in the market.  Or maybe they are having trouble getting to the right customers.  Here they can add personnel, partner with a complementary organization, or sometimes they just stumble along, knowing they have this gap.

Though understanding the gaps in and around your organization or marketplace is not the whole picture, it is responsible for putting the fine point on many of your efforts.  Here are a few recent examples

• ThermoFisher acquired Proxeon to fill a gap in their offering for LC/MS, which in turn addresses the customer’s gap in efficiency

• BioMarker Strategies will receive $1 million from the National Cancer Institute to fill its funding gap.  This will enable them to develop their live tumor cell testing system.

• Ireland’s National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training partnered with Waters to fill a gap in people’s ability to characterize glycans.  They will create a database of glycan information to help enable the production of effective and safe biotherapeutics.

So to focus your efforts, take a look at your organization and your customers to see where the cracks and gaps appear.  That is where the opportunities lie, just waiting for you to take hold of them.

Since the goal usually is to find new opportunities and grow the business, the last thing you need is the all too common s.p.o.t.s syndrome or strategic plan on top shelf [gathering dust]. You need a realistic assessment of the new business you can expect to win, a well though-out approach to get it, and the willingness to see it through

By basing your plans, hopes, and operations on the real situation instead of the hypothetical, success is far more likely. Many good things happen when you are immersed in the marketplace and all of its dynamics.

• With a realistic foundation, successfully executing the plan is far more likely than if it is based on a veneer of hope.
• People in your organization will be more inspired since it will reflect what they are seeing in the market.
• You can build and cement relationships with customers, partners, and others who can provide important resources.
• You will have your finger on emerging opportunities before your competition.
• You’ll make products that solve the important problems, and you will know when to ramp up demand and drive the needed sales.
• You will be confident that folks in your company are working on the most valuable products, markets, and activities.

So to get the best out of your organization and find new opportunities, don’t build your plans while you are exploring the two dimensional view from your screen. Go out into the elements, feel the wind on your face, and get a real understanding of where you need to go.

Fortunately the biggest effect of the storms was waves – the kind that all would-be surfers try to catch.  New England is not known for its surf culture so these folks had their hands full.  It is similar to the efforts of many businesses that are now trying to get a grasp on the wave of opportunities that are starting to roll.

After hibernating for the better part of 3 quarters, it is not easy to jump up to full speed again.  So how do you catch the wave?  I’m sure you remember your fruitless early attempts at bodysurfing, then finally the roaring, frothy acceleration of a properly ridden wave – replete with the broad grin.  It is a similar process.

The essence is this:  don’t stand still.  You must be moving to catch the wave.  You need to have some forward momentum before the wave reaches you.

• Firstly you need to be mentally prepared that the waves are indeed coming and imminent.  It is easy to relax and think that waves aren’t coming yet, but the signs are here – increased R&D spending, production ramping due to reduced inventories, and Uncle Sam pumping in some ARRA cash.  It’s estimated that around $8B will pour into life science coffers over the next couple years.

• Your buddies are already catching these waves so you might as well get in on the action.  Bruker mentioned last week how they have pocketed $10M in new business directly from stimulus funds.  I’m sure others are capitalizing as well, but haven’t let out the secret yet.

• Due to long buying cycles, sales and marketing have to be ramped up months ahead of any waves you intend to catch.  Hopefully you have already started moving here, since those still watching are going to miss some waves.  As the CEO of Nvidia said, “There is no better time to invest…than when the competition in cutting investments.  We know from experience that doing so puts us in a stronger position once the tide turns.”

• When you do want to catch the wave, you need to completely go for it.  A half-hearted effort and you will slide off the back of the wave.  Many pharma and biotech companies are well underway with increased spending on R&D.  Merck, Biogen, Lilly, Bristol-Myers Squib, Gilead, Celgene, Regeneron, Abbott and others are spending over a billion more in the first half of 2009 than last year at that time.

So if there are products to launch – press go; training – start tomorrow; research to do – staff up; sales funnel empty – fill ‘er up.  The wind has blown, and the waves are starting to crash on the beach.  It’s time to catch some waves.

• The right bait – Floating a mayfly on the river in August will not even draw a yawn, but a juicy worm in a small mountain stream will cause a riot.  Matching the product with the desires, hopes, and needs of customers is the starting point for success.  A keen understanding of their environment and situation will bring you far down this road.

• Work your line – Just throwing your line into the water is often not enough to get a bite.  You need to think about what the fish are thinking (I know this is a bit over the top, but its true).  They are expecting your bait/fly/lure to act like what they see in nature.  You need a strategy on how to work the stream.  Similarly your products have to fit with how customers currently operate.  Products that slide into the customer’s workflow have a much easier time of it than those that need a completely different approach.

• The color of your shirt – You’re probably wondering about this one, but its true..  Fish are wild creatures and become concerned (i.e. think they are about to become dinner for an osprey) when a large bright thing appears above the water.  With customers you need to treat them well and not scare them away with claims filled with hyperbole.  A sound market entry plan and good execution will bring customers to your products.

One additional piece is thinking about your prospects for the day while you are on the way to the river.  Before you put your line in, you will have an idea of what you hope will happen.  But one thing is certain – fish or no fish, it is always rewarding to be on the river.  Similarly it is always valuable to be out amongst the customers.  That is where the action is, and that is how you improve your luck.  After all, the first law of fishing applies here – keep your line in the water if you want to catch fish.

ps. yes I did catch that little fellow in the corner.