If you have ever been to the United States of America you probably already know there is a Starbucks Coffee shop on nearly every corner. But have you ever wondered what brought Starbucks its success?

Simply put, Starbucks narrowed its focus to just coffee as opposed to the many other coffee shops that specialized in everything as well as coffee.

The same applies to Subway who started the business with a focus on submarine sandwiches and continues to focus solely on submarine sandwiches.

According to Al Ries and Laura Ries in the book ‘The 22 immutable laws of branding,’ a powerful branding program always starts by contracting the category, not expanding it. The book also states this can help lead to dominating the category your business sits in, which is a very powerful thing. 

As small business marketing consultants we always convey this message to anyone who walks through our doors. We believe if you focus on one product or service your business name can stand out from its competition as the best at what you do. This advice is very valuable for anyone starting or reshaping his or her business.