Adam,
IMO, It is definitely better to acquire 100 customers in the same relative location. First of all, I know you said "in theory", but the fact is, it always costs a lot less to acquire 100 customers in the same location than spread out. When marketing, you always target a niche, and that usually includes where the customer lives. Also, by having 100 customers in the same location, you are more likely to do the following
- Create buzz
- Get press
- Get more referrals
- Save (marketing) money
- Be better able to branch out when the time comes, using the knowledge you gained from your own market to create a well-formulated, state-by-state/country-by-country plan

The list goes on and on... Just think about some of the most successful ventures in the last few years/decades - MySpace, Facebook, eBay - Facebook started out with just a few local schools, MySpace started out in the states and is now expanding, and eBay started out with a very local approach before going national (and only in the past few years started really opening/pushing their international sites)... A company can only concentrate on so much market/territory at a time. Best to max out your own market and learn from it before testing the waters in other markets.
Anthony | 08.08.06 - 6:32 pm | #

Wow, that was a great response
Adam | Homepage | 08.08.06 - 10:01 pm | #

That's a great question and a great answer. I was actually thinking about the same thing. I hadn't come to a conclusion yet so I'm glad you posted this.
Donyell | Homepage | 08.12.06 - 5:08 pm | #