The target is not the market

The target is not the market? What does that mean?

This is a phrase I first heard from Kevin Whelan in his group of marketing advisors. 

But it really clicked with me recently. 

It’s one of those concepts that seems obvious at first — but it can help frame how we think about positioning, branding, and growth. The term was made popular by author Blair Enns, who’s known for The Win Without Pitching Manifesto.

Anytime I’m working on a brand strategy or marketing campaign, one of the first questions I ask clients is:
Who’s this for?
Who’s your audience?
It’s essential at the beginning — it helps us in the process of designing and creating content specifically for them.

But often clients, especially founders and leaders I’ve worked with, want to reach “everyone”. They refuse to commit to a specific audience because they believe everyone can benefit from their product, service, program, event, etc. 

Obviously, diving deep into who you’re serving and building for as a business, nonprofit or any brand is important for success — but not everyone takes a customer-centric approach, or they’re operating based on their own preferences and assumptions. 

For me, this is top of mind more than ever as I’m teaching an Advertising course on Coming to Know the Consumer, where every week I’m giving lectures on the people brands are targeting.

That being said, I thought it was worth sharing this concept of “the target is not the market” with you. 

Target vs. market 

Blair Enns explains that “the target is the narrow area at which you aim. The market is the broader area you are happy to hit.” Think of a golfer aiming for the flag but being happy just to land on the green (or even just staying out of the sand…). When you craft your messaging for a very specific audience, it doesn’t only resonate with them. It almost always spills over into the wider market.

And that’s the point — you don’t have to try to be broad, because breadth naturally happens. Why this matters The mistake many businesses and nonprofits make is trying to reach “everyone.” 

When you start broad though, you end up vague. Your message is too watered down, and you’re left competing with everyone else saying the same thing. That’s why you’ll see so many websites with generic statements. We know it isn’t compelling. 

Yet leaders are often afraid to narrow down, worried they’ll lose potential clients or donors. But in reality, when you make the target small, your market opens up.

From stylists to financial planners

I really like Blair’s basic example of a stylist who launched with a focus on curly hair. Immediately, she attracted clients who were thrilled to find someone who finally understood their needs. But then, those happy curly-haired clients sent their straight-haired friends too — because if she could cut curls, surely she could cut straight.

The target was curly hair. 
The market was anyone with hair.

Another example is a financial planner who started by focusing on families with children with special needs. That focus quickly built trust, reputation, and referrals that extended well beyond the original niche.

The target was families with special-needs children. 
The market was anyone needing financial planning.

How this applies to you 

For those of us working in marketing, nonprofits, or startups, this principle is worth revisiting often. 

If you’re early in your career, business, or initiative, you’ll benefit from making your target very small. It helps you stand out, gain momentum, and build credibility fast. Later on, the market itself may give you permission to expand. You’ll know when that happens — your referrals, clients, or donors will start coming from outside your niche. But the sequence matters. 

Narrow first, broaden later.

Getting specific 

For me, this idea reinforces something I’ve been practicing and teaching: positioning is about having the courage to get specific. 

You don’t lose by narrowing down — you win by being remembered, trusted, and talked about.

When you find success in the niche, Blair reminds us that there will be plenty of signals and opportunities to expand, giving you choices in how to grow.

That’s a healthy reminder for those of us building right now.

Thanks for reading.

— Daniel

PS — If you’re in Toronto, I’m hosting a meetup on October 6 here.

PS — On Monday, join us for a free online session about using AI for Impact.