Happy Monday 👋
Let’s talk about something that quietly breaks most small-business marketing before AI, ads, or content ever enter the picture: Trying to speak to “everyone.”
It feels safe. It feels inclusive. And it almost always leads to bland marketing that nobody remembers.
This week, we’re going to narrow the lens—and that’s a good thing.
The Problem With “Everyone”
When I ask business owners who their audience is, I hear things like:
“Anyone in town”
“People who need what we sell”
“Adults 25–65”
The truth is, those are just demographics, not a target. If your audience is that broad, your message becomes generic. You end up creating content that sounds "fine" to a lot of people, but doesn't actually compel anyone to buy. AI actually makes this worse. If you feed AI a fuzzy audience, it will happily produce polished nonsense.
Watch: The Marketing Flywheel
To stop the "random acts of marketing," you need a system. I just released a new video on how to connect your strategy to a repeatable flywheel, starting with the very audience we're talking about today.
The Audience of One
The shift that actually works is defining an “Audience of One.” This isn't literally one customer, but one clear type of person you deeply understand. Someone you can picture:
You know what keeps them up at night.
You know what they complain about.
You know why they hesitate to buy.
Examples:
A busy mom who wants dinner solved by 5:30.
A farm owner who hates paperwork more than long days.
A shop owner who’s good at their craft but hates marketing.
Counterintuitive truth: Specific marketing attracts more people, not fewer. When you speak directly to that person, your message gets clearer and the right people lean in.
Why This Matters (Especially With AI)
AI is great at polishing, but it’s terrible at guessing. If you don’t clearly define who you’re talking to, AI fills in the gaps with clichés and "slop."
But when you give AI a real audience? It becomes a powerful assistant instead of a content slot machine.
Prompt of the Week: Find Your Audience of One
Open ChatGPT or Claude and try this:
The Prompt: “Help me define my ‘audience of one.’ I run a [type of business] in a [area or region].
Ask me 10 practical questions about my best customers, the ones who value my work, are easy to serve, and come back. After I answer, summarize my audience of one in plain language I can use for marketing.”
👉 Answer honestly. Skip the aspirational stuff. Think about real people, not spreadsheets.
One Last Thought
You don’t need more content, better captions, or new platforms. You need clarity about who you’re for. Once that’s in place, marketing—and AI—gets a whole lot easier.
Hit reply and tell me who you think your "Audience of One" is. I read and respond to every email.