When you glance at a magnificent vista with a wide-angle lens on your camera, you see mountains, lakes, forests and blue sky.

When you glance at the same magnificent vista with a telephoto lens, you might only notice the leaves on the tree.

Marketers need to strap on their telephoto lenses to narrow the view and hyper-segment the market. Customers want to buy from experts who know their industry and who have products that solve their problems.  The closer in your view, the more you can serve a narrow segment of the market.

Go wide, and your message will never resonate.

Go narrow with a message and solution, and the opportunity will come into view.

Keep a Tight Focus

The customer you want to sell must overcome a need and a problem. She may be frustrated by how expensive furniture is today but doesn’t know where to turn to have someone like herself, help her build it. Ads for heavy saws, drills and power tools don’t understand how to nail her concerns.

Ana White runs a popular woodworking site for women www.ana-white.com She is a mommy blogger who loves to build things like a pioneer woman. From the wild of Alaska, Ana provides plans for women who want to build stuff with advice on the right, lightweight tools needed. She can’t lift a heavy drill but found some workarounds to get the job done. Ana’s target is narrow and she is a member of the community she wants to serve.

Kristin runs http://pinktoesandpowertools.com  Her DIY instruction and inspiration in home remodeling and decorating, with an emphasis on woodworking.  The projects on her blog are all done by her, and she proudly claims that she is 5’2″ tall and 115 pounds. She too is helping women like her, solve home DIY projects mindful of the real world challenges.

Both women have businesses narrowly focused on women doing do it yourself projects. They aren’t trying to sell everyone. They both scoped out a distinct segment of the home, DIY marketplace and narrowed their sites. They constantly asked themselves, what community are they serving? 

Their advice is for inexperienced women, like themselves and with an empathic understanding of the challenges that community faces.

These are women who have trouble with larger drills, saws and other pieces of equipment, so their advice is suited for a distinct and narrow target. Their communities are rookies and often first-time builders who need step-by-step directions. These entrepreneurs have a telephoto lens like focus on their customers.

When you think about the audience you want to sell and market to, have you narrowed your focus so you can see the leaves on the trees instead of the forest? 

Focus. It is one of the secrets to great marketing.


As businesses narrow their focus, they can become deeper experts in something and for someone. I can help. I”m very good and narrowing the focus and using my telephoto lens. (I spent 15 years as a commercial photographer).

I can help you grow your business. Call or text me at 919 720 0995 or email me at jeffslater@themarketingsage.com 

Photo credit: David Mark- https://pixabay.com/en/users/tpsdave-12019/