Attract More of the Right Clients: Strategic Visibility, Not Spray-and-Pray

Many businesses find success in spite of their marketing.

They’re so good at what they do, so charismatic, or so well-connected that they never really had to learn how to market themselves properly. They tried a few things, it seemed to work, and now here they are. Living the dream. Or they were, anyway.

Bear with me on this because while this might sound like a post about marketing … it’s not.

Okay. It is. But not in the way you’re thinking.

When we talk about marketing, whether it’s advertising (stay with me now), content creation, educational campaigns, or networking, what we’re really talking about is visibility. A critical step in the know-like-trust journey (and yes, they’re all critical) is simply being known. But that’s where people go awry.

They assume if they’re visible enough, in enough places, the right people will find them. That if they’re seen by everyone, the ones who need them will self select and raise their hands. Like people are out there squinting at a park bench and thinking, “Actually, I do need better dental care. Let me get my phone out.”

And sometimes, that works. But that’s the exception.

Because visibility on its own is just screaming into the void and hoping for the best. Targeted, intentional marketing that works isn’t just about being seen. It’s about being seen by the right people in the right place at the right time with the right message.

It’s not called marketing spray-and-pray or marketing hey-look-at-me. It’s called marketing strategy.

The first takeaway is this: maximizing visibility isn’t the goal. Maximizing visibility to the right people is.

Your business isn’t generic, and your audience shouldn’t be either. You know who your ideal clients are. You’ve got a sense of what mix is most profitable, most sustainable, most energizing to serve. You know who drives your growth. That knowledge should guide where and how you show up.

Marketing is about alignment.

Put your message where these ideal clients already spend their attention. And when they find you there, make sure what you’re saying is relevant, and resonates.

A fictional example

Meet Brian. He runs a small but successful estate and business law firm.

For years, Brian treated visibility like a numbers game. He sponsored chamber mixers. Bought ad space in a few neighborhood magazines. Dropped in on local BNI meetings and occasionally posted on LinkedIn when he remembered. People saw his name but the “right people” rarely followed up.

During a strategy session, we mapped out his best clients from the past two years. Nearly all of them came through one of two sources: financial advisors and CPAs. Most weren’t actively looking for a lawyer. They were referred because of trust because someone they already relied on said, “You should talk to Brian.”

So we shifted the visibility strategy to focus on that.

Brian pulled back from the low-ROI events and redirected that time into two specific tactics:

• He offered free quarterly CLE-style workshops for financial advisors and planners
• He built a lightweight referral nurture system, sending a short monthly note with helpful articles and firm updates

He wasn’t on Facebook or TikTok. He didn’t run paid ads anywhere (not that they drove any traffic his way). And he stopped sponsoring events he didn’t care about personally.

In six months, he’d doubled his referral volume using a smaller budget along with more reliable and civilized hours. It worked because once the right people actually saw him, in the right area, and heard something that mattered to them … they started paying attention.

The math

Let’s say Brian used to spend about eight hours a month on visibility efforts: going to events, writing social posts, and prepping for all the things he thought he “should” be doing.

That’s roughly 100 hours a year. But most of that time wasn’t moving the needle. Maybe one or two decent leads came through, but they rarely were, or turned into ideal clients.

When we shifted his focus to referral-building activities, the effort didn’t increase, it just got more focused, more intentional.

Let’s say one financial advisor sends two new referrals a year and each becomes a $5,000 engagement. That’s $10,000 per referral partner. Add two or three relationships like that, and Brian’s already picked up $20,000 to $30,000 in additional revenue from the same time investment.

When visibility is strategic, every hour you spend on outreach becomes more efficient. It involves less guesswork, less friction, and fewer weekends spent at events that don’t lead anywhere.

Even if you don’t add more time, shifting where you spend it can create a $25K profit swing or more.

What about you?

Take a moment to look at how you’re currently showing up.

Are you everywhere?

Who’s actually seeing you?

And most importantly, are those the people most likely to hire you, refer you, or partner with you? Are they ideal?

You don’t need a massive rebrand or a 90-day content calendar. Start smaller.

Pick one low-yield visibility activity to phase out then redirect that time into something more targeted.

• Reconnect with a strong referral partner
• Say yes to one event only if your ideal clients or connectors will be there
• Share something helpful in a space where your audience already gathers

Remember, marketing is about alignment. You’re not trying to be everywhere. You’re trying to be where it matters.

A final thought.

If your visibility efforts aren’t getting the traction you want, it might not be the message or the platform or even the audience.

It might be the alignment.

If you’d like help pinpointing where your outreach is falling flat or how to shift it toward something more strategic … let’s sit down for a Strategy Session.

It’s free. It’s simple.

And in about twenty minutes, we’ll identify one or two places where better alignment could unlock better results.

Get seen by the people who matter most.