My co-author Jenn recently advised eBay sellers to diversify in order to recession proof their eBay businesses.
I’m not an eBay expert, but I imagine that with the built in audience at eBay, diversifiying is sound advice.
But will this work for a small ecommerce business? Probably not.
Unless you’re a Fortune 500 company, there’s a good chance that you can afford to diversify effectively and compete on quality (as opposed to lowest cost).
My advise to small business owners is to focus in on the one (or two related) things that you’re great at.
If you sell an amazing baby sling, don’t try your hand at cloth diapers and baby clothes as well. Focus your efforts on branding and marketing your sling.
When the economy is better and people are spending more money, then you can look at selling complementary items.
What have you done that has helped your small business in this economy?
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Jenn Cangelosi is owner of 
Agreed. There are very few situations where you want to diversify in online business. If you do, then you probably want to start with a brand new branded concept, or build a whole new website from scratch rather than try to use your brand to go off on a tangent – even a related one.