If you want to get anywhere in the world of business, you need to know exactly who your target audience is. If you don’t know that one basic thing then you cannot hope to create products and services that truly appeal to the right people nor can you tailor your marketing efforts to have the biggest possible impact?
But how exactly do you identify your target audience? Here are a few ideas…
Analyse your customer base
Probably the best way to really identify your target audience is to take a closer look at the customers who are already buying your products and services. You can use things like an IP geolocation API to find out where they are based for example, and there are similar APIs and data analysis tools that will also tell you their age, sex, and pretty much anything else you might need to know. This will provide you with an excellent starting point.
Do some market research
Market research might seem a little old hat in the internet age, but actually, it is one of the best ways to determine who your target audience is and what they want from your business right now. You can, of course, do your own market research, but there are companies out there who are experts in finding out information about consumers and their services are likely to be more effective and efficient, even if you will have to pay for them.
Check out who the competition is selling too
When you’re just starting out in business and you want to quickly identify the right people to target your products and services at, a good place to start is by looking at your competitors and seeing what kinds of people they were selling to. Taking a look at their social media is a good way to do this, but if they own a physical store, taking a trip there could be very illuminating too.
Spend time on social media
Spending time on your own social media account, connecting with your followers and finding out as much as you can about them is another good way to work out more about your target audience. Not only that, but it is an excellent form of marketing in and of itself because customers love a company that really gets involved and treats them like the individuals they are.
Keep revising your customer profile
Of course, once you’ve identified your target audience, it doesn’t end there. Consumer wants and expectations change all the time and if you don’t change with them you will probably waste a lot of time and money trying to sell the wrong products to the wrong people in the wrong way. So, audit your efforts every 6-12 months and try to keep your finger on the pulse.
Identifying your target audience may take time and you may need to invest some of your marketing budget into it, but it is time and money worth spending because the better you know them, the better equipped you will be to sell to them.
