White rabbits: target marketing
- Published
- in Small Business Tips and Advice
A while ago I was interviewed by Community Futures Centre West, one of our strategic partners, and was asked to share the best piece of business advice I’ve personally received. I’m fortunate to have a large network of supporters – all bearing excellent words of wisdom – to tap into, but here’s something that really stood out for me:
My own business advisor (and everyone should have an advisor, no matter how seasoned an entrepreneur they are) once told me the field is full of white rabbits. Pick the white rabbit you can catch and go after that one. In other words, there are opportunities and potential targets everywhere. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking “Everyone will buy my product!” Focus, focus, focus.
Pick the one segment you can catch and forget all the other rabbits until you’ve got that initial target in the bag. Don’t waste your time and money chasing a field of customers, randomly and frantically. They’ll slip through your arms and you’ll end up with nothing.
Quite often new entrepreneurs tell me their target market is “anyone who’ll buy my product” or “anyone who’ll hire me!” Avoid the financial heartache this type of approach brings and instead, thoughtfully identify one specific rabbit to start with, then go after it. After the experience of capturing your first customer, it becomes easier and easier to attract more.
For further reading, check out a previous post titled What’s so important about your target market?
Happy rabbit hunting!