The Who and What of Specializing

Here are two ways you can specialize your business:

1/ Who do you serve?

Do you serve businesses of all shapes and sizes?

Or a narrow market vertical?

Or something in between?

2/ What do you do?

Do you provide a broad set of services?

Or just one?

Or something in between?

Takeaway: the more specific you are on those ranges, the more specialized your firm's positioning can become.

Here's an example of soggy positioning:

I provide online marketing to businesses. 🤮

Here's an example of sharper positioning:

I specialize in helping cosmetic surgeons with their Technical SEO. 🎯

Questions to ponder:

👉 Who do we specialize in serving?

👉 What do we specialize in doing?

Have a great day!

CQ

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the two dimensions along which a business can specialize?

Who it serves, ranging from businesses of all shapes and sizes to a narrow market vertical, and what it does, ranging from a broad set of services to just one.

Why does specificity along both dimensions matter more than picking just one?

Because the more specific a business is on both who it serves and what it does, the sharper and more differentiated its positioning becomes, compared to being vague on either dimension.

What makes "I provide online marketing to businesses" an example of soggy positioning?

Because it's vague on both dimensions, serving essentially anyone and offering a broad, undefined service. That lack of specificity makes the positioning forgettable and easily replaced by any similar-sounding competitor.

What makes "I specialize in helping cosmetic surgeons with their Technical SEO" sharper positioning?

Because it's specific on both dimensions, naming exactly who's served, cosmetic surgeons, and exactly what's done, Technical SEO. That precision creates a much clearer, more memorable position in the market.

What's the practical exercise worth doing based on this framework?

Honestly identifying who the business specializes in serving and what it specializes in doing, then checking whether both answers are specific enough to create real differentiation, or still too broad to stand out.