Skip to content
Request a meeting
Article · Standing out

Your BPO Can't Be Great at Everything

Offering more services should mean more revenue. In practice, a BPO that tries to serve every market gets generic messaging, a confused sales team and buyers who shop on price.

July 2025 · 2 min read

On this page

Short answer

A BPO that tries to be everything to everyone pays for it in three places:

  1. Messaging that goes generic
  2. A sales team that can't explain what makes you different
  3. Buyers who stall while they shop on price

Pick one market and one problem, and lead with it.

Why does generalist positioning stall growth?

Every added service and market dilutes the story your sales team tells.

Most BPOs fall into the same trap. More services should mean more revenue opportunities, in theory. In practice you get generic messaging that doesn't land, a sales team stuck explaining how you're different from your competitors, and buyers who stall while they shop around for a better price. That is the exact bind newer reps find themselves in when positioning is muddy.

The instinct to say yes to every opportunity is understandable. It's how most BPOs grew in the first place, and it's where the margin erosion that comes with every scope-creep "yes" starts. But every added service and vertical dilutes the story your sales team is telling. Buyers can't tell what you're actually best at, and without that clarity the only lever left is price.

If you want predictable growth, shorter sales cycles and higher-margin clients, you need to fix your focus.

What should you do if you serve too many verticals?

Find the one that sets you apart and lead with it.

Look at your existing clients and find the pattern in where you get the fastest results and the strongest relationships. That is your niche. Commit to leading with it in your positioning, even before you've fully stepped back from the rest.

If you've looked at your pipeline and wondered why it isn't working, the answer is usually here. Not enough leads isn't the real problem. The real reason so many BPO pipelines stall despite plenty of leads is too many different stories competing for the same sales team's attention.

Next Step

If buyers compare you on price, we can talk it through.

Frequently asked questions

We're contractually committed across several verticals already. How do we niche down without walking away from existing revenue?

You don't cancel contracts. You stop selling to the verticals you're exiting and redirect new business development toward the one you're keeping. Existing revenue runs its course while your pipeline shifts underneath it.

What if the niche we'd pick is smaller than our current market? Won't that cap our growth?

A smaller addressable market at a specialist's price and win rate usually outperforms a larger one at a generalist's price and win rate. You're not choosing a smaller ceiling. You're choosing a market where you can win the deals in it.

How do we get sales reps to turn down out-of-niche deals instead of chasing quota?

Give them a real reason to say no: a clear ideal-client definition and proof that off-niche deals close slower and at worse margins. Reps chase whatever's rewarded. Change what quota counts, and the behavior follows.

Amanda Quinn, Principal at Evostr

Amanda Quinn

Amanda Quinn is a Principal at Evostr. She is an independent analyst for Fourcasters, was named to ICMI's 2026 Top 25 Thought Leaders in Customer Experience, spoke at and judged awards at Matchboard BPO Exchange 2026, and co-hosts the Build a Better BPO podcast.

Keep reading

Keep reading on standing out

All insights on this question