Contributed by SBOC Member:
Founder of the Small Business Owners Community
This blog first appeared in the new “Small Business Summary” newsletter. The Summary is for busy entrepreneurs to get the answers to the test they need to keep growing. It’s curated, quick, and focused on getting you what you need in as little time as possible. Get it delivered to your inbox every Tuesday morning by signing up here.
Hang with me for a second—I promise it’ll make sense (and maybe even put a jolt in your revenue).
As you plan for the new year, one of the biggest mistakes you can make is trying to help everyone. Because when you aim for everybody, you end up hitting nobody. Let’s fix that.
Below are the six steps for firing those potential clients that aren’t quite the right clients—so you can zoom in on the right ones instead.
Think about the exact issue or challenge you solve, rather than listing out all the folks you serve. For example:
There you go—concise, clear, and compelling.
Next, decide who you’re serving: age range, gender, location, income, and job title. Maybe it’s:
This specificity doesn’t exclude you from other opportunities; it amplifies the right ones.
It’s not enough to say you help with onboarding. What exactly is broken? Where’s the frustration? For instance:
Pinpoint that real pain so you can fix it.
If you could wave a magic wand for your ideal clients, what would their dream scenario look like? Maybe it’s:
Now you’re getting somewhere.
Once you know who they are, you’ve got to go where they are—both in person and online. Maybe it’s a specific Facebook group or an annual conference just for women business coaches. Show up, stand out, and connect authentically.
Combine all these details into one crystal-clear persona, like:
That one-sentence summary guides every piece of your marketing, from headlines to hashtags.
Don’t guess—ask. Chat with a real-life Lisa in your world. Share what you’re working on and see if it resonates. You’ll come away with your tagline, your key marketing messages, and the exact words they use when describing their challenges.
I see it time and again – small business owners target too many people with too many products. If you have the courage to focus and the discipline to do the work to validate your audience and offer, you’ll see a surge in your business.
This blog first appeared in the new “Small Business Summary” newsletter. The Summary is for busy entrepreneurs to get the answers to the test they need to keep growing. It’s curated, quick, and focused on getting you what you need in as little time as possible. Get it delivered to your inbox every Tuesday morning by signing up here.
Pat spent two decades in broadcasting management and hosting. After leaving the radio industry, he spent time consulting small businesses and realized the support system for entrepreneurs was broken. Where could you find help for improving small businesses and building real connections with other like-minded people. In June of 2020, the Idea Collective Small Business Community was born.
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