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Glite Dictionary
shotgun approach

shotgun approach

1 6.5
A strategy that tries many different things at the same time
  • noun
  • /ˈʃɑtˌɡʌn əˈproʊtʃ/
translation icon : enfoque disperso
  • To improve customer engagement, the business implemented a shotgun approach by simultaneously launching various promotional campaigns.
  • take a shotgun approach

But without knowing who the hell you're marketing to, what they want from you, it's like a shotgun approach.

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Examples

  • Back when the arguments were being made, many commenters (IIRC) criticized the shotgun approach the lawyers followed to defend the law (first CC, then N&S, then taxing authority).

    Blog text (3)

  • Our current shotgun approach will never hit the critical target.

    Academic text (1992)

  • So the more shotgun approach and if they respond and raise their hand, then of course our call center is following up on that inquiry.

    Tom Ferry

  • They adopted a shotgun approach to scientific research.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • Samsung is winning the battle of volume with its shotgun approach to smartphone deployment.

    Blog text (16)

  • You can either spend all of your time taking the shotgun approach, or you can create a plan, quantify the results, and create success rather than hope and pray for success.

    Blog text (30)

  • As Glenn characterizes, it moved to a kind of shotgun approach, not a kind of more narrow rifle shot kind of approach.

  • The marketing team decided on a shotgun approach to generate more leads by utilizing many different advertising channels at once.

  • In tackling the problem, the researchers employed a shotgun approach, testing various methods to see which one would be the most effective.

Synonyms

scattergun
vsshotgun approach
1 6.7

A way of trying many different things at once without a clear aim

is about using many methods simultaneously without implying lack of focus
double-barrelled approach
vsshotgun approach
  • UK
6.6

Using two different actions at the same time to reach a goal

uses many different attempts simultaneously rather than only two coordinated tactics

How Broad

shotgun approach
1 6.5
longtail approach
  • Specialized
8.6
to direct
14 3.4

Surface Forms

shotgun approach singular
shotgun approaches plural

Morphology

shotgun + approach

A B1 learner who knows 'shotgun' (a firearm that scatters shot) and 'approach' (method/strategy) can plausibly infer a broad or scattergun strategy by metaphorical extension, so the meaning is partially deducible. However, the mapping from a literal weapon to a strategic method is metaphorical and carries pragmatic nuances (e.g. lack of focus vs. deliberate breadth) that are not fully predictable without exposure.

Etymology

Shotgun approach comes from the image of a shotgun, a gun that fires many small pieces which spread out over a wide area. That's why a shotgun approach means trying many different things at once instead of using one focused method ('many different attempts').