What on earth are marketing “verticals”? Everyone seems to have a different answer.
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I work for a very large engineering firm. We are big enough to go after all the market verticals relevant to architecture, engineering, and construction. Most companies arent large enough to go after all the potential verticals so they stay in their “swim lane” which might be relegated to audio-visual products for K-12 education or perhaps software for the Department of Transportation. Examples of market verticals (there are many more) are:
Transportation (Airports, Rail, and Highway)
Federal Government
State Government
Department of Defense
Sports and Entertainment (large facilities like stadiums and concert venues)
Higher Education (Universities, colleges, and community colleges)
K-12 (elementary, middle, and high schools)
Large Enterprise (big financial companies, law firms, or just any big company with multiple locations and thousands of employees)
Small to Medium businesses
Healthcare (Hospitals, research facilities, pharmaceuticals).
It is important to note that it’s not simply a matter of what verticals a company “wants” to pursue in business. You have to have the sales teams who have the right contacts and industry experience. There might be aspects of a market vertical that keep you out of that sector such as a need for large logistics capabilities (warehousing, distribution, etc.). Or perhaps you lack the required contract vehicles (a list of capabilities, registered pricing, and a particular geographical footprint that has been approved by a state or local government) to go after some types of business. Then of course, there’s the very important need for experienced personnel. You might want to get your hands on all that broadband money the government is handing out, but your IT support team only knows fiber termination and do not know how to navigate government grants or obtaining right-of-way in municipalities. Many companies make the mistake of spending too much time pursuing business that they really arent equipped, qualified, or experienced for and they end up wasting a lot of their money pursuing business while at the same time, wasting their customer’s time.
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