In the last two months –
I had the opportunity to deal with a few attorneys. Even though I wasn’t the client… I watched—in the first row—how three lawyers went back and forth with a case.
No Mike Ross’s brilliance in real life.
But I noticed an interesting skill:
HIGHLIGHTING
Attorneys are great at drawing the key point.
Before they take on the case, they’ll ask the client –
“What is your ultimate goal for this case?”
And EVERYTHING surrounds that one goal.
(sometimes, even sacrificing obvious benefits)
To give you an example:
If you’re dealing with a real estate case… and you tell the lawyer that your ultimate goal is to make the other party follow through with the purchase… then –
Making the sale happen is ALL they care about.
Discounts.
Unequal treaty.
Pre-closing construction agreement.
The lawyer will return with many “bad ideas” to close the deal.
Absurd? Maybe
Effective? Definitely.
So… what does this have to do with marketing?
The biggest mistake in most marketing campaigns—including ads, emails, or advertorials—is losing focus.
I see this too often.
You are passionate. You love your product. You have a million brilliant ideas you want to share. And you try to do too much in one campaign…
The result?
A Cerberus—charging in three different directions.
No matter how hard you tug…
It goes nowhere.
Solution?
Focus on a single takeaway.
Cut out everything else—ruthlessly.
(sometimes, even sacrificing important insights)
And you’ll have a much more effective campaign.
Cheering for you,
– WYH