Who are you targeting with your marketing campaigns? Is it a 70-year-old retiree in Boca Raton or a 30-something professional in Manhattan? If you close your eyes right now, can you conjure up an image of your ideal customer?
Effective marketing needs a specific target. It’s important to have an ultra-clear, high-definition picture of that target, then develop your marketing strategies around them.
We’ve seen plenty of small businesses adopt the “more is better” mentality. They shout their message at everyone within hearing distance, watch it disappear into the ether and are genuinely shocked when their strategy is heavy on the “miss” and light on the “hit.”
Identifying your target market isn’t exactly a day at the beach, but it is a necessary task if you want to make your marketing more effective. If you’re not sure who’s in your wheelhouse, we have some tips that can help!
Take a Long, Hard Look at Your Current Customers
The search for your target market begins with your current customers: those fine folks who have chosen you as their primary purveyor of whatever it is you sell. On the surface, these people probably look very different from one another. But if you dig a little deeper, you’ll probably find significant similarities.
Do they all seem to come from the same income bracket or age group? Do they greet each other by name in the aisles or on your social media pages, indicating they live in the same area or attend the same social functions? Do most of them push strollers holding young children or elderly dogs?
Once you find the similarities among your current customers, you can begin to target other people with the same traits.
Determine Who Needs Your Product or Service Most
What you sell can also help you determine your target market. Very few college students are shopping for an accountant to handle their retirement accounts, and there aren’t many big city dwellers looking for someone to repair the engine on their John Deere.
Make a list of all your offerings and the benefits of each. Who needs them? What value do they bring to a person’s life?
For instance, you’re a small travel agency specializing in high-dollar, adults-only resorts, you probably won’t include low-income families with children on your mailing list. If you run a butcher shop, you’re not going to target vegetarians or vegans (unless you like a challenge, of course).
They say a good salesman can sell ice to an Eskimo. That may be true, but why spend your time and money targeting one Eskimo when there’s a whole desert full of people just dying for ice?
Beware of Getting Too Specific
When it comes to target marketing, specific is great. Too specific, however, can quickly produce its own negative effect.
If you find that your list of targets is exceptionally thin, you may need to rethink things. While it’s not wise to market to every last person, there’s also little point in creating a campaign around the small group of 25 perfect customers who meet your rigorous standards.
There’s a fine line between shouting your message from every rooftop and pruning your potential target market to next to nothing. When you manage to find the balance, good things will follow!
Are You Ready to Find Your Target Market?
Determining your target market allows you to use your marketing dollars more efficiently. You’re not wasting money peddling your wares to those who have less than no interest in buying; instead, you’re researching who is most likely to be interested in your products or services and hitting them with a targeted pitch.
Do you need help with your aim? Mischa Communications can work with you to identify your target marketing and make sure your marketing message flies true. The sooner you reach out, the sooner we can get started!