Many footwear brands have come up when you take the recent years into account but sports shoes manufacturers like Adidas, Nike, Zappos are some of the names that come up instantaneously. And this has been largely because of the marketing campaigns and market sizing that has been done by these firms. Brands like these have successfully gained the consumers' trust and they keep on living up to their expectations time and again which has also helped them keep their market dominance.
And the strategies followed by these companies will act as lessons to any budding entrepreneur looking to establish their own sports shoes business. Sports shoes for men are always in demand, but while you can see people wear different shoes with colour and style combinations, not all shoes can qualify as sports shoes. Therefore, it is essential to form an idea around the product, the market, and the consumers.
Let's look into some of the ways that can help your men’s sports shoes business grow -
1. Decide on a Theme
Brands like Nike and Adidas use sports as a theme to target their audience. Each of these brands keeps itself linked with any kind of sporting event or spectacle worldwide which helps them further establish their place in the segment. Try to remember the number of instances where you have watched a sport without seeing the names of sports shoes manufacturers such as Nike, Reebok, Adidas, and Puma.
Therefore, you as a brand have to associate your brand with a theme that can help consumers link your brand to a bigger entity. You must keep yourself invested in these campaigns time and again. Each event will help your consumers with brand recall and cement your name in their minds.
Read More: Most Popular Football Brands In The World
2. Use Market Research
Before you can manufacture your product, you must have a deep understanding of your consumer group. Nowadays a lot depends on how you reach out to customers and the personalized experience you are providing your customers with. For this, you need to have pinpoint customer targeting. To gain insights into the consumer pool, depend on web analytics, previous market data, polls, surveys, competitor analysis, and so on. Segmentation can also be done based on factors such as hobbies, income, age, location and so on. There are third-party entities that specialise in market research and provide you with consumer data. It will also help your farm to use these channels to get your consumer data faster and get ahead of the competition.
3. Narrow Your Customer Base
Conduct market research and analyse your rivals' business models. Because the footwear industry is not a new concept, there will be lots of domestic and international competitors.
As a result, deciding who you want to compete with is critical. If you're making men's sports shoes, means that individuals from all walks of life (men) can afford to buy them and therefore local merchants will be your direct competitors.
However, if you want to build a brand and sell your items to people with higher income levels, you'll face stiff competition from both international and domestic firms. Sport shoes price are varying and therefore narrowing down your customer base would also mean narrowing down your price. The next stage is to go to competing retail businesses and analyse their client base since they are the people who will be your target market.
4. Use Video Advertising
Men's sport shoes brands use video-driven campaigns to educate, motivate and engage consumers. Even small, short videos and GIFs work wonders. Visit the YouTube channel of any popular brand and see the number of content that they use on their social media channels. Some of these video depictions also tell you a short story over an extended AD which works like short movies.
It helps you acquire consumers faster, increase brand engagement and promote your brand on various platforms. The cost is very considerate given the potential reach that you can achieve. You can also interact with your customers better on these platforms and use limited-time campaigns that can be used by the viewers of the video.
5. Pricing Strategy
As far as sports shoes for men prices are concerned, they are all over the place. Depending on the brand, the differentiation that you are offering your customer and the level of personalization that you are achieving, you can also price your product higher than the average. But at the end of the day, it is your responsibility to make the customer realise why they should pay extra for your brand.
For example, Nike sport shoes prices are higher because they treat themselves as a premium brand. Adidas prices the basis of its product how Nike's prices but sometimes a bit cheaper to help them win the consumers who are looking for a premium brand but still at a comparatively lower price.
Therefore, you must carefully decide how to position your brand among the competition and what pricing strategy will help you achieve your objective.
6. Distribution Strategy
Adidas' most fundamental distribution strategy is to focus resources in the areas where the most profitable client group is present. As a result, it opened stores all over the world to serve this goal. It also places a premium on providing comprehensive customer care at the point of sale. Adidas offers an online shopping option in addition to its store.
Nike, on the other hand, pursued a strategy of exploring and expanding new markets, and as a result, its stores can be found in approximately 200 countries. It offers its products to independent distributors, licensees, and subsidiaries, just like Adidas. It, like Adidas, offers its wares online.
Given that shoes manufacturers like Nike, and Adidas are humongous brands and therefore have accumulated enough capital over time to set up a broad market strategy , it is advisable to focus your resources on places where you expect the most profit from.
7. Deliver Personalized Experiences
Many companies are now offering to personalize your shoe for you. Nike and Adidas are also known to deliver personalized experiences to their customers. Consumers can add their name, number, or personalized message on the shoe they are buying. According to a survey, in 80% of cases, consumers will more likely opt for brands that give customers more options and personalized experiences.
8. Manage Your Current Account Effectively
The current account is intended to promote companies in the same way that a savings account is designed to encourage savings and investments. It's a deposit account that you may create with any bank to keep track of your company operations.
A current account differs from a savings account in that the former does not pay interest. Under the current account, a minimum balance must be maintained.
The best aspect is that, unlike a savings account, which has a daily transaction restriction, a current account allows you to make unlimited transactions per day whether you pay with checks or online. Online banking and an overdraft facility for up to a certain amount are available.
Conclusion
As we may already know, the key ingredient for success is planning and determination. Therefore, when you are in business it is always advisable to have a strategy and game plan in mind. In a country of opportunity like ours, starting a business may not be so tough but the real challenge lies in the fact that it will need real acumen to grow your business and make it profitable. The competition will not spare you, but it is your job to create a blue ocean which in simpler terms is to make a space for yourself in the market that can not be taken over by others.
FAQs: Men's Sports Shoes
Q. What are the requirements for starting a shoe business?
Ans. In India, if you want to start your business, you need to register your company and get a GST number. You need to get the necessary licensing, location approval, and an authorization letter from responsible authorities.
Q. Is investing heavily in marketing advisable for the men's sports shoes business?
Ans. Your investing in a particular business process should always be backed by a rationale. If your strategy entails that investing in marketing will help you increase sales, capture the market and build trust then that will be the way to go. But if on the other hand, you believe that your product would not need much advertising and marketing and you can not forecast any tangible return from such an activity, then there is no need to do so.
Q. Is it better to outsource production or carry it out yourself?
Ans. Production unit setup and cost will be significant during the initial stage of the business but that will be balanced out once you achieve economies of scale. But the uncertain factor in this stage is the time taken to achieve break-even which can be predicted accurately.
Related Blog Topic:
