You can't be everything to everyone.
Most founders and owners agree with that statement and even use it in their content.
They would never try to position their businesses that way.
But look at their messaging, offers, and marketing strategies, and you'll see a different story.
Vague messaging, lukewarm promises, generic marketing, using ChatGPT or templates to create content, and offers similar to every competitor Google can rustle up.
It all screams: We don't know who we're for, and we'll take any client who could give us money.
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That positioning is killing your business.
The Dangers of Being Everything
Early on, most founders will take any client or project they can get.
We're wired that way.
Every founder I've met is incredibly talented β they are experts in multiple things.
Take me, for example.
I have done everything there is to do in branding and marketing during my 20+ year career.
- Google Ads? I can do them.
- Tradeshows? I can do them.
- Content? I can do it.
- Live events? I can do them.
- Email marketing? I can do it.
- Website Design? You get the point.
If someone comes to me asking for Facebook ads, I can do them. I've created and run multiple successful campaigns that made businesses a lot of money.
But just because I can doesn't mean I should.
You see, positioning is about holding a place in people's minds.
It's about being that guy or that woman or that business.
- He's the branding guy
- She's the email woman
- They're the intellectual property business
Reaching that status takes focus β one solution, solving one problem for one ideal customer.
When your messaging is vague, when your marketing is boring, when you have 10 different offers...
...you'll never own a specific place in people's minds.
That leads to the worst danger a business could face:
They won't even think of you when they are ready to buy.
Ouch.
The Warning Signs
So, how do you know if you've fallen into that Everything to Everyone positioning trap?
See if these are true of your business:
- Your offer is an "All-in-One Solution"
- You have three or more ideal customer profiles
- You've niched by industry and nothing else
- You have multiple offers you're trying to sell
- Your offers don't stack on each other
- You don't know who to talk to in your marketing
- Your website messaging is vague (innovate, optimize, enable)
- You present every nuanced option to every client
- You don't have a streamlined process to deliver your offer
- Every client is a custom project
- You take on bad-fit clients because you need the money
- You generate leads that can't afford you
- Your close rate is under 60%
If you said yes to any of those, your business tries to be everything to everyone.
You'll be nothing to everyone and will struggle to generate leads for the life of your business.
A Quick Fix
Fixing your positioning takes work.
A new strategy, a new mindset, dropping offers, new messaging, new marketing, and sometimes even a whole new operational stack.
We've gone as far as scrapping every offer and creating something completely new for a client.
But chances are you aren't ready to do that from an email.
So, here's ONE thing you can do to fix your position:
Get very specific about the customers you'll serve.
None of this "CEOs of $3M+ companies" crap.
Here's what you should know:
- Job title
- Revenue
- Industry (if relevant. Often, it's not)
- Problem they face
- How that problem makes them feel
- What solving that problem will do for them and their business
- Specifics related to your solution
For example, our ideal customers are:
Founders and CEOs of B2B service companies making $500k or more with a successful offer who have seen stagnated or declining revenue growth, are in transition and have either a one-person or no marketing team.
Knowing that information, you can create messaging, marketing, content, and an offer that is perfect for them.
Do that long enough, and you'll own a very specific place in their minds.
And become the ONLY choice when they are ready to buy.
Until next week,
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#SassyJason out.
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