"Most leaders understand their message needs to define exactly who their work is for. Fewer realize that it should also define who it's not for. Fewer still realize that their message is unintentionally excluding some of the very people they want to attract. Effective messaging repels on purpose. Careless messaging excludes by accident. And for leaders, knowing the difference can make or break your organization's credibility."
"The idea of intentionally turning away potential customers can make leaders uncomfortable. It seems counterintuitive, even reckless, to deliberately shrink your total addressable market when you're trying to grow. But trying to message to everyone can come at a high cost, resulting in: Misaligned employees. People who don't share your organization's values may become unhappy and disengaged, ultimately eroding your culture and reputation. Wrong-fit customers. They'll never be satisfied with what wasn't designed for them, leading to negative reviews, returns, and reputation damage."
"Values-based repelling involves taking a strong public stance on the ideas that matter most to your brand, effectively filtering out those who don't share those values. When Patagonia launched their edgy "Don't Buy This Jacket" campaign with a full-page ad in the New York Times on Black Friday, they weren't just making a statement about overconsumption; they were signaling to impulse buyers and fast-fashion hunters that Patagonia isn't for them."
Effective messaging declares both who a product or organization serves and who it does not serve. Intentional repelling helps attract the right customers and align employee culture by filtering out wrong-fit audiences. Messaging to everyone risks misaligned employees, dissatisfied customers, and wasted resources across advertising and customer service. The costs of attracting the wrong audience accumulate over time and damage reputation. Two powerful repelling tactics are values-based declarations and explicit audience definition. Values-based repelling uses public stances to exclude those who disagree. Explicit audience definition names the ideal customer and makes clear who should not engage.
Read at Fast Company
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