The 8-Step Fix for A Scattered Sales Focus
Last week, I talked to a BPO founder who was frustrated. "We've been targeting healthcare for over a year," he told me. "We have good relationships there, but we can't seem to get consistent traction."
Sound familiar?
In our conversation, I uncovered that his team was effectively spraying and praying within the vertical: they reached out to billing departments at orthopedic clinics for a few weeks then when they didn’t get traction, moved on to targeting regional hospital systems, and then to mental health therapy practices in a few states. They would bounce between sub-segments in the vertical, never making real traction across any of them.
This is the classic BPO targeting trap: confusing vertical experience with strategic focus.
The Problem with "Healthcare" as Your Target Market
Just because you've successfully served a few healthcare clients doesn't mean "healthcare" is your target market. It's like saying your target market is "companies with phones."
When your sales team tries to scale this broad approach, they hit the same walls:
Generic sequences that don't resonate or convert
Conversations that feel like cold pitches rather than consultative discussions
Discount pressure because you sound like everyone else
Single-threaded deals that die with one "no"
The Real Cost of Unfocused Targeting
Here's what happens when you don't get specific:
Your sales team is perpetually starting off at square one. They're constantly starting over. They’re never building on previous conversations, never really understanding the buyer or their needs, or developing deep market knowledge.
You miss the compound effect of reputation. When your messaging is scattered across departments and organization types, you can't build the kind of word-of-mouth that drives referrals and shortens sales cycles.
Your operational expertise stays shallow. Without focus, your team never develops the deep process knowledge that becomes your competitive moat.
The Fix: Replace "Vertical" with Micro-Vertical + Workflow
Stop thinking in broad verticals. Start thinking in specific workflows for specific company types.
Instead of "healthcare," think "payer RCM for PE-owned orthopedic surgery centers." Instead of "technology," think "L1/L2 support for PLG DevTools with $50-$250M in revenue."
Here's the step-by-step approach that works:
Step 1: Audit Your Current Reality
List out all the specific company types and workflows your business serves today. Get granular: e.g. bookkeeping and financial close prep for Series C+ renewable energy companies; L1/L2 support and knowledge base management for DTC e-commerce companies with revenue between $50-$200M.
Step 2: Score Your Best Opportunities
For each micro-vertical & workflow combo you identify, score it 1-5 on:
Referenceability: Do you have named logos and before/after metrics?
Unit economics: What's your gross margin after shrinkage, WFM, and QA?
Process repeatability: How mature are your SOPs and automation leverage?
Compliance readiness: How deep is your trust pack for this vertical?
Talent supply: What's the skill pool and ramp curve for agents?
Partner leverage: Can you co-sell through independent software vendors or system integrators in this space?
Step 3: Pick Your Focus and Kill the Rest
Choose your top 1-2 ICPs based on those scores. Then—and this is critical—stop pursuing everything else for 90 days.
Yes, this feels risky. But scattered focus is why your current approach isn't working.
Step 4: Build Your ICP Playbook
For your chosen focus area, create a one-page overview that includes:
Company profile: Revenue band, volume patterns, seasonality, common bottlenecks Technology stack: CRM, telephony, WFM, RPA, ITSM, and where the integration breaks Compliance requirements: SOC2, HIPAA/PCI, data residency must-haves
Buying committee: Executive sponsor, ops owner, IT/Security, Finance, Procurement, Legal Trigger events: Vendor churn, regulatory changes, hiring freezes, volume surges
No-bid signals: Sub-scale volumes, "labor-only" mindset, security non-starters
Step 5: Lead with Outcomes, Not Labor
Rethink your pitch. You are not selling capacity; you’re selling a design for how you’ll run their LOB. Start with operational KPIs that matter to your ICP:
AHT, FCR, QA scores
CSAT/NPS improvements
Abandon rates and PTP/collections percentages
Backlog clearance and cycle time
Show before/after charts. Include a one-page method that covers your WFM model, QA framework, analytics layer, and automation guardrails. Then translate this to business impact: revenue protection, cost-to-serve improvements, compliance risk reduction.
Replace those generic "capabilities" slides with "Here's exactly how we would run your operation,” including volumes, shift windows, shrinkage assumptions, occupancy targets, and detailed playbooks.
Step 6: Build Your Target Account List
Create a 100-account list that matches your ICP precisely. Include the full buying committee for each account, not just one contact.
Prioritize accounts that have trigger events within your ICP, but don't let triggers pull you outside your focus area.
Step 7: Test and Iterate with Focused Outreach
Run a multi-channel cadence to 20-50 accounts: LinkedIn connection, email, phone, value-add content, short video, follow-up asset, and a breakup sequence.
Use micro-CTAs that reduce friction: "Send the 2-minute teardown?" "Include the security FAQ?" "Want the one-page outcome map?" These move the conversation forward without requiring a big time commitment.
Step 8: Support with Marketing
Align your content creation, case studies, and thought leadership around your chosen ICP. When prospects research you, they should immediately see you understand their world.
If budget allows and you know the right channels to reach your prospects, consider targeting your account shortlist with digital marketing to amplify your outreach efforts.
What Happens Next
Within 30-60 days of this focused approach, your sales team will start recognizing patterns. They'll hear the same challenges, use the same solutions, and build confidence that comes from deep expertise.
Those conversations will feel different. Less like cold outreach, more like consulting discussions. Your close rates will improve, your sales cycles will shorten, and your margins will expand.
Most importantly, you'll stop starting over every quarter.
The path from generalist to specialist isn't about limiting your opportunities—it's about maximizing your impact in the areas where you can truly win.
