Lead Generation

Stop Fighting for Obvious Prospects

Stuart Bell 2 min read
Stop Fighting for Obvious Prospects

Everyone's fighting for the same prospects. The obvious ones.

I had a conversation with Rich Adams that reminded me everyone has this problem. Rich runs a fantastic leadership company, and he told me about a recent call with a C-level prospect.

The executive mentioned they receive 15-20 cold outreach messages every single day. All targeting them because they're the "obvious" buyer.

Here's what's happening in that market:

  1. Every competitor targets the same C-suite executives
  2. They all use Apollo to pull identical lists
  3. They blast emails to the same crowded inboxes
  4. Everyone fights for attention in the same space

Then we talked about who else has the problem but nobody's targeting. For Rich's leadership programs, it's managers leading 20-person teams, department heads with their own budgets, and team leaders responsible for performance.

These people need the same solutions. They have budget authority. They feel the pain every single day. But nobody's reaching out to them.

Why Not?

Because they're not the first position that comes to mind. Because it takes slightly more thought. Because everyone else is too busy fighting over C-suite executives.

Same thing happens in every market. Identify the obvious prospect. Use the same tools as competitors. Send messages to the same crowded inboxes. Blame the channel when response rates tank.

The Prospects Nobody's Targeting

The prospects nobody's targeting are just as findable. Same LinkedIn filters. Same company databases. Different job titles. But the competition drops to near zero.

Here's what's wild:

  • The ignored prospects often have MORE pain
  • They usually have faster decision-making authority
  • Your message actually gets read

The question worth asking: who does everyone in your industry ignore while fighting over the "obvious" prospects?