Can Your Target Audience Find You?

One of the most crucial tasks you can do for your business is to tightly define a target audience. Your target audience is that segment of the population that a) has a need or source of pain; b) that can be solved by your product or service; c) at your price point; and d) within geographic limitations. The more specific you can be with your target audience definition, the more efficient you can become at closing your deals.

First of all, the more you know about your target audience, the better you can meet their needs. Spend some time brainstorming to come up with a comprehensive list of attributes or characteristics of people who need or want your product or service. Where do they live? What do they do on a typical day? Where do they work? What do they do in their spare time? What are their hobbies? What books or magazines do they read? What TV shows do they watch? What concerns do they have? Write it all down. Then pick out the characteristics that most closely align with the audience you want to work with and write it out in a clear sentence: “My target audience is …” And there you have it, a description of your target audience.

Defining Your Target Audience is Only Step 1

Once you know the characteristics of the individuals in your target audience is, you need to spend time specifically tailoring your marketing messages to address their concerns and offer your product or service as a solution. A targeted marketing messages is always more effective than a general market message. Never forget that your actual target audience is comprised of individuals who all have a need or source of pain in common. One method that works for me is to actually sit down and write a letter to an individual in my target audience (I call her Tonya) and list all the struggles she is having and how my service solves each one. Each problem/solution combination I come up with is a possible marketing message. And then it’s just a matter of testing different messages and ways of communicating them to come up with something that really resonates with a large portion of my target audience.

Go to Where Your Target Audience Is Waiting

Your task doesn’t end at defining your target audience or at creating the message. You have to go one more step – you need to decide how you are going to position yourself and your marketing message in front of your target audience. How do you get their attention? You’ve got to be visible to your target audience.

I recently asked a women to tell me about her ideal customer and she responded that her product is perfect for single moms, or working moms who are over-busy. When I asked her to describe her marketing activities, I noticed that she was participating in a lot of direct sales groups on Facebook but she wasn’t getting much business. Her messages were very generic. I asked if she was also involved in any “mommy” groups. She looked confused for a second and responded, “No. I don’t have kids.” Major disconnect.

You have to go where your target audience is. Otherwise, you are talking to people who are not going to buy from you. Even if you don’t have children, if your product solves a problem that mothers have, you need to get involved with mothers. And you need to talk about the issues that mothers have that your product solves. You have to get in front of your audience. If your target audience takes their daughters to dance class once a week, talk to a dance studio and see if you can do a demonstration of your product to the moms in the waiting area. Think outside the box. They have to see you before they can buy from you. And don’t forget, buying is often a result of a relationship. Buyers want to feel that they know, like, and trust you before they spend money with you.

Time spent defining your target audience and finding ways to get in front of them is time well spent. Put it on your to-do list today.

Here’s to your success,

Trina

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