How a Simple Marketing Question Exposed a Billion-Dollar Blind Spot
The elevator ride up to their New York City office felt surreal. Here I was, dressed casually as always, about to meet with executives from a company generating tens of billions in revenue. Little did I know I was about to uncover a fundamental flaw in their marketing strategy that was causing their sales to decline.
As I stepped into the conference room, I was greeted by ten executives in pristine suits. The contrast couldn’t have been more apparent. From the outside, this company appeared to be crushing it – impressive office space, well-dressed leadership team, and a reputation that preceded them. But beneath the polished surface, something wasn’t working.
The Marketing Audit
I started with my usual checklist of questions. Having consulted with numerous large companies, I’ve learned that even the basics can’t be taken for granted. “Are you doing email marketing?” I asked. This might seem obvious, but I’ve sat in rooms with billion-dollar companies that completely overlooked this fundamental strategy.
“Yes, we’ve automated our list,” they responded confidently. “We’re doing great there.”
Moving down my mental checklist, I inquired about their advertising efforts. Their response was immediate and enthusiastic: “We’re doing tons of advertising, especially digital. We’re running branded keywords on Google to protect our brand terms, and we’re heavily invested in retargeting on Facebook and Meta.”
The Moment of Truth
That’s when it hit me. I leaned forward and asked the question that would expose their entire problem: “Where in this strategy are you actually reaching anyone new?”
The room fell silent. These experienced executives looked at each other, and no one had an answer. They had created a closed loop:
- They were emailing their existing list
- They were retargeting people who already knew about them
- They were bidding on keywords from people already searching for their brand
In essence, they were just talking to the same people over and over again. Not a single element of their strategy focused on expanding their audience or reaching new potential customers.
The Three Pillars Perspective
This situation perfectly illustrates why awareness – one of the three pillars of marketing I discuss in my book The Hawke Method – is so critical. No matter how successful a company becomes, it must continually fill the top of its marketing funnel with new prospects. Here’s why:
- Customers naturally move on to other solutions
- Brand loyalty shifts over time
- Market conditions and needs evolve
Without a steady stream of new potential customers entering your ecosystem, your customer base will naturally shrink over time. It’s like trying to keep a bucket full while it has a small leak – if you’re not adding new water, eventually it will run dry.
The Wake-Up Call
What struck me most about this situation was how such a successful company had missed something so fundamental. Their marketing team had become so focused on optimizing their existing audience that they’d forgotten about growth. They had sophisticated systems, substantial budgets, and smart people, but they’d lost sight of the basics.
The solution wasn’t complicated. They needed to shift some of their budget and attention to true awareness campaigns – reaching people who had never heard of their brand. This meant exploring new channels, testing different messages, and venturing into unfamiliar territory.
Sometimes the biggest insights come from the simplest questions. In this case, a straightforward “Who are you reaching that’s new?” revealed a critical gap in a multi-billion dollar operation’s strategy. It’s a reminder that no matter how large or successful a company becomes, the fundamental principles of marketing still apply.
Walking out of that office that day, I couldn’t help but smile. The solution to their declining sales wasn’t hidden in complex data analysis or sophisticated marketing technology. It was right there in plain sight, waiting for someone to ask the right question.
This experience reinforces a crucial lesson for businesses of all sizes: never assume that success today guarantees success tomorrow. Keep asking the basic questions, stay focused on growth, and always remember that new customers are the lifeblood of any business, no matter how established it may be.
