Affinity Groups and Commoditization

Evidently some people thought my last post was anti-affinity groups and encouraging companies to sell out to ARC.  I'm sorry if it came across that way.  Here are the points I was trying to make:

• Buying power is important, but no longer the MOST important benefit of affinity groups.  I believe it is joint selling, education and experience sharing.
• I do believe all of the affinity groups are trying to offer these components (in addition to buying power)
• If you are a smaller shop and you are not actively working on developing value added services and escaping commoditization you should be thinking about an exit strategy.  There is value, but the value of your business is not increasing with time.  It is decreasing.
• If you want to exit your business, selling to ARC is not the only option.  There are plenty of companies who are buying.
• The affinity groups, the IRgA, and the regional associations are a great place to get education on how to escape commoditization.
• Doing something with that knowledge and bringing about change in your organization is up to you!