Why this matters
Every channel demands its own format, cadence, and learning curve. A solo founder spread across five channels does all of them badly and learns from none. Two channels supported consistently for a quarter beat six supported sporadically, and you can only judge a channel you've actually supported.
What "done" looks like
- Two channels chosen in writing, tied to where your named customer spends time
- Everything else explicitly parked, not guiltily half done
- A sustainable cadence defined for each (e.g., three posts a week)
- A 90 day checkpoint on the calendar to judge results
How to do it
- List where your one customer already looks for what you sell: search, Instagram, a local paper, trade groups, their inbox.
- Shortlist channels you can support weekly with your real skills and hours. A video channel is wrong if you'll never film.
- Pick one discovery channel (search, social, local events) and one owned channel (email, the next steps build it).
- Define minimum viable consistency for each and put it on your calendar.
- Commit for 90 days before judging. Algorithms and habits both need runway.
- At the checkpoint, double down or swap, making one change at a time.
Common mistakes
- Picking the channel you personally enjoy instead of the one your customer uses
- Quitting after three weeks because results are quiet. Every channel starts quiet
- Staying on six platforms as an excuse to be accountable for none
Real world examples
- Traction by Gabriel Weinberg and Justin Mares catalogs 19 acquisition channels. Its Bullseye framework has companies test a few, then concentrate on what works, not cover all of them.
- Examples worth testing include local search and referrals for service businesses, and Instagram or Pinterest for visual products.
From a founder's point of view
Channel FOMO is a tax on focus. The platforms you ignore aren't missed opportunities; they're the price of doing two things well enough to matter. Depth compounds, breadth evaporates.
Rule of thumb
If you can't sustain a channel for 90 days at a steady cadence, you didn't pick a channel, you picked a distraction.
