Saturday, June 21, 2008

Stop trying to reach "everyone"

Submissions to the News-Sentinel's Daily Rant are rarely rational or even coherent. Sometimes, they're just plain nuts. But today's entry is a useful reminder of how easy it is to be myopic about your product, service, idea, or world view:

Let’s turn the old OmniSource building into a giant quilt center! We could have festivals aplenty downtown, and it would bring an estimated $6.7 million into the community! Plus, everyone loves quilts!*
I don't love quilts. Do you love quilts?

Starting with the premise that "everyone" loves something is a sure way to fail in reaching your audience. Be vigilant about cutting as many people out of your target audience as possible. Don't aim for the masses. Shrink to grow.

*I have no idea where the $6.7 million figure comes from, but Rant ravers usually make up for their lack of facts with their enthusiasm.

4 comments:

Jon Swerens said...

You know, I was at work at The N-S this morning, and this particular Rant received some incredulous laughter.

But I'm suspicious. Quilting is just too obvious a target of some punk kid who thinks he's funny. So, I think this Rant is someone who thinks he has mad sarcasm skillz and, actually, doesn't.

Jon Swerens said...

Oh, and quilts are OK.

Erik Deckers said...

@Jon, the "everyone loves quilts" may not have been sarcastic. I've known plenty of people who believe "everyone" loves something, or "everyone needs to know" about a certain fact/issue/controversy.

The fact is, "everyone" ain't gotta know "anything." Sure, certain issues might be important, but as I have said to people in the past, most people don't care to know how intestinal diseases are transmitted, that there is lead in old houses, or that agrarian practices in the Middle Ages have led to our current "work from dawn to dusk" mentality.

Kevin Erb said...

Actually, someone in this town does need to open a Waffle House. That comment is nuts, alright - nuts like a fox. I need a place here to get my hash browns smothered and covered, thank you very much.