Military Generals have entire intelligence divisions dedicated to making maps . Corporate CEOs have departments and professional service firms devoted to mapping their industry value chain, their competitors, their customers, their own organizations, and their financial markets. Maps are used to make the decisions that achieve strategic goals. You might even use a map just to get groceries.
But when it comes to leading small and medium companies in the middle market, most of us are flying by the seat of our pants.
We see markets as a special kind of computing machine with many components working together to produce value for the end consumer. But unlike normal machines, where all components are forced to work together, free market participants only work together if they can reach an agreement on their share of the value being created. This results in a transaction.
So a market map is simply a map of these participants, their products, and their transactions. When you need a competitive landscape analysis, a market sizing, a market opportunity scan, a value chain analysis, a price map, a product list, a vendor list, a customer list--you're looking for a market map.
The view from the ground is real-time, accurate, and immediate. A map cannot possibly compete with your own eyes on these points. But that is not what maps are for.
Maps provide a different perspective. An overview of the terrain, a view of yourself from the outside, relative to the landscape. Maps show you those things beyond your line of sight, in your blind spots, behind obstacles, below the horizon, beneath the surface, and behind you. Maps can give clues to what's coming by noting the position of components in the machine.
Maps are expensive, difficult, and time consuming to make. These costs must be justified by a customer with a large market opportunity. That is why market maps are so hard to find for the nooks and crannies of the middle market. It is usually private equity firms, with their deep pockets, who can afford to commission mid-market map makers. We know this because they hire us regularly.
Do they share these maps publicly? No. They own them and keep them secret. We must sign agreements of confidentiality, and we cannot share them. These maps are their edge on the competition. And their competition is YOU.
Our answer was clear: we would commission our own mid-market market maps, out of our own shallow pockets, and own the maps ourselves. This lets us share them to whomever we want at a fraction of the cost and time to commission one from scratch. It only takes a few customers to cover the cost of a middle market map, and we believe by working together we can give you back the market edge.