So you’ve got a service or product that you know inside out. But for some reason, you’re not getting the traction you’d hoped for from your advertising. We totally get it, it can be incredibly frustrating for business owners when they have something to offer that they’ve put their blood, sweat and tears into and it’s just not getting enough bites. Let us introduce you to the concept of the target audience. You may have heard of it before, or it could be that you’re entirely new to the business sphere and have no clue what it actually means. Either way, that’s okay, we’re going to break it down for you. 

What is a target audience?

If we want to get all technical with it, the definition of a target audience is described as being a group of people defined by various common attributes and characteristics. In simpler, less jargony terms, target audiences are basically groups of people that are most likely to buy your services or products.  Take this for example — you’ve developed a skincare range you want to sell, so naturally, you assume everybody that has skin (so literally everyone) will want to buy your product. This is where you’ve taken a step in the wrong direction. Some people may not want to use harsh chemicals on their skin, others might want skincare that’s specifically designed to fight the signs of ageing, or it could be that there is a group of people that don’t have time for rigorous skincare routines and want something that’s easy to use. All these groups are wanting a different thing from a skincare range — they are all different target audiences.

Problem Solving

Too often businesses fall short on their marketing because they aren’t clear about who their product or service is actually speaking to from the start. Establishing what your target audience looks like is the first step to getting the most out of your marketing. In order to do this, you need to have a think about the pain point that your product or service solves or the challenge it overcomes. Ask yourself, ‘’what can it do for consumers?’’. A time tracking app is beneficial for consultants who need to charge their clients for the time they spend doing the work, just like a military-grade phone case works for people in the construction industry who may be more prone to having their phone fall off a 12-storey building.

Once you have a vague definition of who your target audience is, you need to be able to narrow it down even further if you really want to position yourself in the market and have an advantage over your competitors. This is where target audience analysis comes in. Here is where we consider the demographic, interests, consumer behaviour and product-specific criteria of your target audience.

Demographic

For your demographic, you want to think about things like the age, gender, socio-economic status, profession or even the education level of your target audience. What are their interests? Do they lead a very active lifestyle? Are they conscious of their environmental footprint when it comes to consumption? These indicators all factor into what kind of person or group your product or service is best catered to. Then there’s consumer behaviour — that’s when you take a look at things like what social media platforms they are most likely to use on a regular basis, what their payment preferences are, and how simple they want the purchasing process to be. When it comes to product-specific criteria, it’s all about what is unique about your product or service and how you can target the most probable customers. 

To put it quite frankly, there’s a whole lot of research involved in figuring out who your target audience is before you’ve even started your marketing marketing. The good news is, it’s a pretty informative and satisfying process, and there’s a bounty of resources you can use to make it easier to put your finger on.

Surveys: Put out a survey to your contacts, whether they be friends, family, work colleagues or even your Facebook followers. There’s plenty of free survey software available online like SurveyMonkey, hotjar, or even Google Workspace.

Google Analytics: This is a fantastic tool for gathering data about audience demographics and mapping online behaviour.

Facebook and Instagram Insights: These social media platforms do all the work for you. You’ll be able to see analysis on things like how many users visited your page within specific time periods and how your posts are performing.

Competitor Analysis: Take a look at your competitors’ websites and social media, or even businesses that are in a similar industry, to see how their presence is working for them.

Feedback: To really fine-tune your target audience, ask for feedback from your customers on your website or via email. You could even just ask the people in your circle what they honestly think to gain constructive feedback.

Have a crack at these and let us know how you go. If you’re still struggling to nail your target audience, Elm is always here to help!

Are you ready for us to lend a hand? Contact us here.