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Stop trying to be everyone’s favorite flavor!
The whole internet’s turning into a giant rabbit hole, and everyone’s diving down their own personal tunnel.
We’ve evolved from “Social media” to “Interest media”.
You’ve got podcast feeds on artisan pickle-making. Instagram accounts dedicated solely to vintage doorknobs. TikTok channels where people review gas station snacks from the 1980s. (That last one’s actually me on Saturday nights, but that’s beside the point.)
Point is, nobody’s wandering the digital mall anymore, hoping to stumble onto something cool. They’re laser-focused on their thing. Their weird, wonderful, incredibly specific thing.
Which means your job just got way easier AND way harder.
Easier because you don’t have to appeal to everyone.
(Thank goodness, because everyone is exhausting.)
Harder because you actually have to know who your people are and what makes them tick.
Here’s what I see happening: you’re probably still trying to cast that big wide net, hoping to catch whoever swims by. But those fish have gotten picky.
They’re not biting on generic bait anymore.
They want the exact worm they’ve been dreaming about.
So forget about being everything to everyone.
Find your “smallest viable audience”… the folks who light up when you talk about what you talk about…
And give them exactly what they came for.
Those people? They become your marketing department. They tell their friends. They tag you in posts. They show up every single time because you’re speaking directly to them, not to some imaginary crowd of millions.
Your podcast doesn’t need a billion downloads. Your events don’t need stadium-sized audiences.
You just need the right people who actually “Care”.
Stellar Marketing Quotes
“I’d tell anyone who wants to be a podcaster … find a niche you’re passionate about and willing to be immersed in.”
Sandra Sealy
“Not everything that makes sense works, and not everything that works makes sense.”
Rory Sutherland
Foam hats and runaway horses…
A plastic pony doesn’t exactly command respect.
But there I was at the Tucson Rodeo Parade, marching alongside my morning partner, broadcasting legend Bobby Rich. Both of us wearing giant foam cowboy hats and hauling a fake horse down the street.
We looked ridiculous. We knew it. The crowd knew it. Even the real horses probably knew it.
Then things got REAL, real fast.
The wagon entry directly ahead of us—four massive horses pulling an authentic Old West setup—suddenly went sideways. One horse spooked.
Before anyone could blink, the whole rig was careening off the parade route and straight into the crowd. People scattered. A few folks went down. And while thankfully nobody was seriously hurt, the scene was pure chaos.
A local cowboy swooped in like something out of a movie and lassoed that runaway horse. Crisis averted.
Sort of…
We still had half a mile of parade left to walk. The crowd was shaken. We were shaken. And we were standing there holding a plastic pony and wearing foam hats that suddenly felt even more absurd than before.
So what did we do? We put our heads down, stopped the enthusiastic waving, and just kept moving forward. No fanfare. Just one foot in front of the other until we reached the end.
Sometimes that’s all you can do. When things go sideways, you don’t need to have all the answers. You just need to keep showing up and moving through it. Even if you’re doing it with a goofy prop in your hands.
That’s the kind of thing I work on with podcasters and event hosts all the time.
How to keep your audience engaged even when your brain is screaming at you to panic.
If you’ve ever felt stuck in the middle of a live interview or event, wondering what the heck to do next, let’s talk.
Book a quick 15-minute one-on-one with me. I’ll listen to what’s tripping you up and give you real, actionable tips you can use right away.
No pressure. No plastic ponies required.
(Link below)
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“Never stop testing, and your advertising will never stop improving.”
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