Good positioning hurts when you first try it on. And it should hurt, at least a little.
Why? Because good positioning is tight and narrow. It’s specific. It solves particular problems for particular kinds of people.
It should feel like you’re leaving a lot of opportunity on the table.
And the reality is, you are. If you’re doing it right, you’re leaving MOST of your potential opportunities on the table by saying no to most things.
And yet, counter-intuitively, by saying no to most things, you say yes to many more.
The challenge most consultants have is they can help a LOT of people do a LOT of different things.
If you’re good at marketing, for example, you can solve marketing challenges for a wide range of clients.
The problem, however, is that your clients and prospects have choice. And the more choice they have, the more interchangeable you are.
Which brings me to the reason you want to have a narrow focus.
By focusing narrowly on one particular target market, and then solving one particular problem for them really well, you immediately remove 99% of the competition.
The choice for your clients becomes either choosing you—the one who only solves their precise needs—or all the other options who claim they can help anyone with anything.
So which will you be, the interchangeable supplier who claims they can help anyone?
Or will you be the consultant who appears out of nowhere with the exact solution your ideal clients are looking for?
The choice is yours to make.
P.S. I recorded a deep dive on this topic today in the Mindshare Community.
If you’re a marketing professional who wants to sell your expert advice—not just your hands—then I highly recommend you check it out and become a member.