February 23, 2024
The fear that will wreck your business
A funny thing happens when I work with someone to transition from a typical “anything for anyone” generalist position to something more specific and useful that actually attracts leads.
Within the space of a minute, they go from:
A) Acting as if they could provide value to any kind of client in the whole wide world
To:
B) Not being able to name a single type of business they feel is a good fit for them.
I’ll give you an example.
Let’s say “Bob” has been a full-stack web developer for a decade.
By definition, this means he’s a jack-of-all-trades with regard to web development.
I look at Bob’s website, and it has a big huge headline that says something like:
“I build websites for businesses.”
Or:
“I build beautiful, professional websites to help grow small- to medium-sized business.”
Or:
“I build websites for clients locally and globally, from small e-commerce stores to large corporate sites.”
So... you MIGHT think that in a case like this, I could suggest literally any target market to Bob, and he would say, “Sure, I could help them.”
But the opposite happens!
Whenever I suggest a target market to Bob, he shoots me down.
Me: “What about building websites for lawyers?”
Bob: “Nah, they’re probably too formal.”
Me: “What about credit unions?”
Bob: “I’ve heard they’re tight with money.”
Me: “Accountants?”
Bob: “I’d get bored.”
Me: “Animal shelters?”
Bob: “They’re all broke.”
Me: “Restaurants?”
Bob: “Too much drama.”
Me: “Environmentalists?”
Bob: “Too far left.”
Me: “Hunters?”
Bob: “Too far right.”
...and on and on and on...
After a while, it starts to seem like Bob has an objection prepared for any target market that I might suggest.
The irony here is that his website states that he’d work with virtually anybody and yet when I suggest marketing to somebody in particular he rejects the idea.
And the DOUBLE irony is that if an environmentalist or a lawyer or a restauranteur walked through the door to hire Bob, he’d jump at the chance to work with them! Which is it, Bob? Are lawyers a good fit or not?
What’s really going on here is that Bob is afraid to make a decision.
And this fear is wrecking his business.
Here’s the thing...
Like all decisions, picking a target market is scary because it could fail.
You could be wrong.
It might not work.
There’s no guarantee.
But what I CAN guarantee you this:
If you are currently getting NO LEADS from your website, getting more specific in your marketing can’t make things any worse.
Yours,
—J