Every brand hits a point where chasing breadth blurs relevance. It tests leadership resolve and the team’s focus. Clarity returns when leaders sequence before they scale: pick one primary segment, prove traction, then expand deliberately. From there, learning compounds, acquisition costs drop, and growth regains direction.
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What this means for leaders navigating growth, change or transformation in their organisation.
Broad targeting looks safe, but it quietly slows learning, blurs the message, and weakens conviction inside the organisation. When you talk to everyone, you sharpen for no one; teams default to generic campaigns that neither convert strongly nor teach you anything meaningful about what truly moves a high‑value buyer. The commercial effect is subtle at first and then obvious: higher acquisition costs, slower cycles, and uneven pipeline quality.
McKinsey notes that 71% of consumers now expect tailored interactions—and 76% feel frustrated when they don’t—which, when delivered well, creates outsized value (McKinsey).
The way out isn’t to argue for perpetual narrowness; it’s to commit to sequencing. Depth first, then breadth—with evidence. By compressing your focus to a primary segment, you accelerate signal: you learn faster which problems matter, which messages convert, and which channels actually move the needle. That learning compounds into brand meaning and sales momentum.
Most organisations we work with find that this disciplined sequencing reduces risk precisely because it makes bold choices prove themselves early. The organisation earns the right to expand, backed by hard lessons rather than hope.
Choose a primary segment using criteria that are hard‑nosed, not aspirational:
Treat competing opportunities as a backlog, not a parallel push. The aim is to concentrate creative, product, and go‑to‑market energy until you can point to observable traction.
Focus is a habit, not a workshop. Create a simple cadence that keeps the organisation honest:
This rhythm removes ambiguity. People know where to put their best work, and leaders see faster, cleaner feedback loops.
Expansion should feel inevitable because the evidence piles up, not because the board is impatient. When leading indicators beat your baselines for two consecutive quarters, you’re seeing the compounding effect of focus. That’s the moment to widen selectively—one adjacent segment at a time—porting what works and adapting only what’s essential.
The result isn’t a smaller ambition; it’s a sturdier growth engine. You build market depth that travels with you, so each new segment becomes easier to win than the last.
Curious how this applies in your market? We’re speaking with leaders across industries every week. Let’s talk.