You can bleed a budget dry talking to the never-gonnas.

Marketing fundamental #1 is know your target. (Duh.) After that, aggressively exclude segments who waste your resources chasing them. It’s a survival skill.

What got us thinking about this was someone who had seen our Darwinian video, asking if we were “concerned” with losing prospects who deny natural selection. It’s a reasonable question, since polling indicates about half of America rejects Darwinian evolution, some of them fervently.

Half. That’s a troublesome big number to offend, bewilder or ignore. We do so, however, judging them to be among the never-gonnas. Contemporary digital marketing, for example, calls for a blend of art and science. The un-scientific half of the population seems stuck in the last century, maybe even the 19th, so we see no overlap: potential branding clients vs. flat-earthers. The Venn diagram circles don’t touch.

Many marketers want to reach out to everyone as a just-in-case strategy, to leave no stone unturned. It’s a classic example of bad budgeting. Fish where the fish are. Once you’ve identified the bullseye of the target, focus on it, look at most one circle out, and  stop talking altogether to the outer rings where you’ll spread yourself thin.

Are there market segments you should ignore? Concerned with media choices with too much waste circulation? Need suggestions on how to target more cost-effectively? Call us.