Why Your Amazing Business Isn’t Growing
You’re putting in 60-hour weeks. Your amazing products and services build economies. Or changes lives. Or both. Your mission matters. Yet your bank account tells a different story.
Sound familiar?
Here’s what’s really happening: You’ve unknowingly bought into what I call the Field of Dreams growth strategy—the myth that good work automatically leads to growth.
If you build it, they will come only works in Hollywood.
Except it doesn’t work that way. Not for Kevin Costner, and definitely not for your business.
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TLDR: Four Reasons Your Business Isn’t Growing
The six ChatGPT prompts below help tourism marketers solve real problems: Why aren’t we visible? What do visitors actually want to know? How do we turn clicks into customers? Perfect for busy destination marketers who need strategy, not just content.
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The Brutal Math Behind “Build It and They Will Come”
Before we dive into solutions, let’s talk numbers. Today’s marketing landscape is working against you:
- Up to 21 touchpoints (outreaches) are needed before someone truly notices you
- 1.9-3% conversion rates across most industries (You need to reach 50 people to make one sale)
Translation? You might have to do 700+ outreaches before one person signs on the dots. No wonder you feel like no one’s listening.
And if you’ve been relying on social media as your magic bullet? Well even the most viral of emails just means you’ve reached “more” people, but it doesn’t do much to drive you towards your 21 outreaches *per* person.
Here’s the real truth: Even in the movie, Kevin Costner didn’t just build a ballfield and wait for people to show up. He followed mysterious whispers, plowed under his livelihood, drove across the Midwest recruiting players, and dragged a cranky James Earl Jones out of retirement. He risked bankruptcy for his vision.
The field got built, but there was a whole lot of hard work before, “they will come.”
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The Four Reasons Your Business Isn’t Growing
After working with hundreds of purpose-driven entrepreneurs, I’ve identified four critical gaps that kill growth—even when your work is exceptional.
People Don’t Get What You Do
You’ve built something brilliant, but if people can’t understand it in 10 seconds, they’ll walk right past it.
In Field of Dreams, the ballfield was clear. But that wasn’t what mattered. It was the promise: “Come reconnect with what you’ve lost.”
“Visit our empty ballfield” as marketing? Terrible.
“Play catch with your long-departed father”? Pure gold.
The Real Problem: You’re burying the lead. You talk about your process instead of their outcome. You use insider language instead of human language.
The Magic Message Test
Can someone who’s never met you explain what you do in one sentence? If not, you’ve got a clarity problem.
Try this Formula:
I help [specific audience] achieve [concrete outcome] through [your method]. When they work with me, they experience [immediate benefit], feel [emotional transformation], and gain [lasting change].
Example:
- Instead of: “I provide holistic wellness coaching”
- Try: “I help burned-out executives reclaim 2+ hours daily through personalized energy management. They experience immediate stress relief, feel genuinely excited about Mondays again, and build sustainable habits that protect their health long-term.”
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People Don’t Trust You (Yet)
Would you visit a random cornfield in Iowa? Probably not.
But if James Earl Jones personally invited you? You’d at least consider it.
That’s the power of trust signals.
The Real Problem: You’re expecting people to take risks on an unknown entity. Without proof, transparency, or social validation, even the best offer can feel risky.
- Instead of: “I provide holistic wellness coaching”
- Try: “I help burned-out executives reclaim 2+ hours daily through personalized energy management. They experience immediate stress relief, feel genuinely excited about Mondays again, and build sustainable habits that protect their health long-term.”
The Trust Stack
Build credibility in five layers:
- Professionalism – Updated website, professional emails, current copyright, polished presentations. Ignoring these small upgrades can suggest to clients that you don’t care about quality.
- Proof – Let others champion your services. Collect and post client wins, case studies, annual reports, before/after results, testimonials, and public reviews.
- Transparency – Show your process with behind-the-scenes content, FAQ sections, and clear process outlines. If you have standardized pricing, don’t hide it.
- Presence – Show up consistently with reliable (not flashy) communication. Be timely and dependable and you’ll outplay almost everyone.
- Status – People love to work with winners and exclusive providers. Post awards, speaking gigs, media mentions, strategic partnerships.
In the words of Shoeless Joe Jackson (played by Ray Liotta),
Ty Cobb wanted to play but none of us could stand the SOB when we were alive, so we told him to stick it.
Quick Win: Add one trust signal to your homepage this week. No testimonials yet? Reach out to former clients or colleagues. Ask: “What was it like working with me?” or “What results did you see?”
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People Don’t Know You Exist
Here’s the hard truth: If you’re not growing, it’s because not enough people know about you.
Remember those brutal numbers from earlier? You need multiple touchpoints with hundreds of people to generate meaningful growth. Most businesses give up after a few attempts (if that) — and that’s why they stall.
The Real Problem: You’re buying into the “they will come” myth. Visibility isn’t a nice-to-have. It’s a business requirement. Growth demands showing up, consistently and frequently, to cut through the noise.
The Real Problem: You’re buying into the “they will come” myth. You’re treating visibility like a nice-to-have instead of a business requirement. Growth means showing up, consistently and frequently, to cut through the noise.
The Awareness Engine Strategy
Pick ONE channel. Master it. Show up religiously.
Options:
- Email newsletter (weekly value-driven content)
- YouTube/Video (consistent educational content)
- LinkedIn (daily professional insights)
- Podcast guesting (monthly appearances)
- Speaking/Events (quarterly presentations)
The Relationship System
People aren’t always ready to buy right now. If you just promote once or twice, they’ll quickly forget you. Unless you have a Universal Studios-sized budget, stop chasing only direct sales through cold outreach. Focus instead on building relationships.
If every outreach effort feeds into a relationship system, you control the timing — following up on your schedule and staying top of mind.
What’s a Relationship System? Usually, this includes email marketing. Today’s platforms are robust and affordable. On a TIGHT budget? Track outreach and follow-ups in a spreadsheet, or use tools like HubSpot’s free or nonprofit plans.
The Key: Commit to reaching your audience multiple times per month through your chosen channel. Inconsistent visibility = invisible business.
Quick Win: Create a lead magnet to turn awareness into email subscribers. When someone joins your list, you can reach them repeatedly without starting from scratch every time.
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It Takes Too Long to Get Results
In Field of Dreams, dearly departed players showed up and immediately started playing ball. That’s what your clients want too—to get on the field fast.
The Real Problem: Your delivery is clunky. You’re recreating everything from scratch, over-customizing, and creating friction where there should be flow.
The Speed-to-Value Principle
People aren’t hiring you to solve someday problems. They want right-now solutions delivered efficiently.
Ask yourself:
- Can someone go from “I’m interested” to “I’m in” without delay?
- Do you have a buy now button, or do potential customers have to wait for you to respond to them?
- Do you have instant communication (DMs or automated messaging) set up so people feel confident you will respond quickly?
- Do you have repeatable systems, or is everything custom?
- Are you using templates and automation to reduce friction?
- Does your process feel professional or chaotic?
Quick Win: Template ONE part of your business this week. Your welcome email. Your discovery call questions. A buy now button. Your project kickoff checklist. Make something repeatable so you can focus on growth, not having to do (redo) all the things manually.
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Customers Want to Know
FAQ: What Are More Tips to Grow My Business?
A: Start with former clients, colleagues, or even people you’ve helped informally. Ask: “What was it like working with me?” or “What results did you see?” You can also document your own case studies as you work with new clients, or offer a few free sessions in exchange for honest feedback. Or host a free training webinar and collect feedback from attendees.
A: Not necessarily. Social media is just one awareness channel. The key is picking ONE channel and showing up consistently. Email newsletters, speaking at events, podcast guesting, or even networking can be more effective than social media efforts, especially if they’re scattered. Choose what aligns with your strengths and where your audience actually spends time.
A: Potential customers, ultimately, are looking for, “What in it for me?” If your info doesn’t clearly state that, they will move one to someone who does. Clarity also eliminates confusion, reduces sales friction, and makes it easier for happy clients to refer you. When your message is clear, everything else—marketing, sales, referrals—becomes dramatically easier.
A: Ask five people outside your industry to read your About Statement, then have them explain back to you what you do and who you help. If they can’t do it clearly, you need to simplify. Also try the “elevator test”—can you explain what you do in the time it takes an elevator to go up two floors?
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Start Today
Five Quick Wins
- Write your Magic Message using the template above; post it everywhere, on your home page or your page footer, create an About Page, post it on your socials.
- Add one trust signal to your homepage (testimonial, case study, or credential)
- Pick your awareness engine and schedule your first 5 pieces of content. This can be social media or direct outreach.
- Create a clear “work with me” button with specific next steps. And an automated response for people who click or subscribe.
- Template one business process to reduce “future friction.” Start by writing a standard “cold outreach email” and keep it handy.
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