The Problem with Solving the Wrong Problem
Most businesses aren’t failing because they’re bad at marketing. They’re failing because they’re solving the wrong problem.
Think about it. How many times have you seen companies focus on generating leads or driving clicks without understanding why those efforts aren't converting into revenue? It’s the equivalent of pouring water into a bucket with a hole in it—and then blaming the water for not filling the bucket.
The real issue lies in what I call the "Revenue Blind Spot." Businesses often mistake activity for progress. They obsess over tactics—SEO, ads, funnels—without addressing the underlying strategy that ties these actions to actual growth.
Here’s a tough truth: If your business isn’t growing predictably, it’s not a traffic problem or a conversion problem. It’s a clarity problem. You haven’t identified the bottleneck that’s holding you back.
I once worked with a company that had invested tens of thousands of dollars into Facebook ads to drive webinar sign-ups. The numbers looked great: thousands of registrants, impressive engagement, and a low cost per lead. But their revenue? Stagnant.
When we dug deeper, we found the problem wasn’t their ads or their offer—it was their follow-up. They had no systematic way to nurture the leads after the webinar. Those thousands of registrants were slipping through the cracks because there was no process to move them from interest to commitment.
This happens because most businesses treat symptoms, not root causes. They focus on fixing what’s visible—poor click-through rates, low engagement—without asking, “What’s really broken?”
Here’s a better way to think about it: Every business has three revenue levers—getting new customers, increasing the value of each transaction, and increasing customer lifetime value. Most businesses lean too heavily on the first and neglect the other two.
Imagine what would happen if you shifted your focus. Instead of chasing new customers, you could create a strategy to upsell existing ones or build deeper relationships that increase their loyalty. Suddenly, you’re not just patching holes—you’re building a bigger, more efficient bucket.
Here’s where it gets even more interesting: When you solve the right problem, it often eliminates a dozen smaller problems automatically. Fix the follow-up process, and you might not need to spend as much on ads. Optimize your customer journey, and conversion rates improve without tweaking your website copy.
So, what’s the real problem in your business? Is it the metrics you’ve been trained to obsess over, or is it the systems and strategy that support them?
Here’s your challenge: Stop focusing on fixing what’s broken in isolation. Step back. Look at your entire customer lifecycle—from first touch to loyal repeat buyer—and ask yourself, “Where’s the bottleneck?”
Once you identify it, everything changes. And that’s when growth starts to feel inevitable instead of impossible.