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Are you familiar with the product life cycle concept? (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Product_life_cycle_management http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Product_life_cycl
by dkokelley 17y ago
Are you familiar with the product life cycle concept? (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Product_life_cycle_management http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Product_life_cycle_management)
(Unfortunately the article doesn't include a diagram, so I'll point you to one: http://www.ccfplus.com/wp-content/uploads/plc.png http://www.ccfplus.com/wp-content/uploads/plc.png)
The cycle can be applied to products, industries, and even individual companies. It seems like you're at just about the maturity stage of the cycle, meaning that growth has slowed and new customers won't be coming as quickly.
I'm not sure I can help specifically, but many product life cycle graphs also include an 'innovation' stage, which occurs either at maturity or decline, and essentially restarts the growth stage. (http://blog.cestudios.ca/images/innovation-product-life-cyc.gif http://blog.cestudios.ca/images/innovation-product-life-cyc....)
If you think that this cycle applies in your situation, then it's time to innovate. I think moving to Europe is a good idea. It's basically the same product to a new branch of customers. Eventually the new geographic segment well will dry up, and you'll have to look at other ways to innovate. What new products does your existing market base want? Do you have a decent grasp of who your typical customers are? Would they be willing to use a subscription-based app (good source of recurring revenue)?
Another angle to investigate is sponsorship by certain parks and trails. Would the local parks and rec office be willing to promote community hikes through your website and iPhone app? A great thing you have going for you is location-awareness. You know that users who are searching for trails in a specific area either are or plan to be there sometime soon. As they are searching, future events could show up on the maps. Where is most of your web traffic coming from? You could even promote hiking safety or kids hiking events, depending on your audience.
I congratulate you on your success so far - In fact, I envy you. You've found a way to combine two things that you enjoy and turn it in to a business. Keep up the good work. Good luck!