Why Is It So Important To Identify Your Target Market?
Have you ever felt as though you’re speaking into a void when it comes to your marketing materials?
What about talking to potential customers that end up nowhere near you making a sale?
No one likes to exhaust their resources. However, you might be doing exactly that if your main focus is on the wrong group of buyers. In fact, 80% of content is geared towards the wrong audience. Spending all of your efforts speaking to the wrong audience isn’t beneficial to your business or to those customers missing out on all you have to offer.
What you need to do is ensure you’re speaking to the right people. This way, you’re producing deliverables that can convert into sales.
Identifying your target audience is essential to any growing business, and doing so is easier than you might think!
Need a little oomph added to your business’s copywriting? Contact FocusCopy to learn how we can help your business grow.
Factors That Impact Your Overall Marketing
Identifying your target market is just as important as the product or service you’re offering. Because without talking directly to your target market, you likely end up losing a lot more than you realize.
Money
Did you know? The average small business spends an average of $9,000 to $10,000 per month for online advertising.
On top of your marketing budget, you also have monthly fees associated with your website and other tools you use to get your name out there. In addition, you have operations and supply costs to cover.
However, if you’re consistently speaking to the wrong demographic, all of those essential business elements aren’t being recovered.
Resources
On top of your budget, you have all of your deliverables that aren’t earning results because the audience you’re focusing on isn’t the right one.
Time
The time you spend planning, organizing, and executing your advertising adds up. Make sure your time is used efficiently by talking to the audience you really want.
Potential Revenue
The thing is, there are probably plenty of people who are interested in your business. But they’re not buying because they simply haven’t heard of you. Hone in on the potential customers you want by shifting your focus.
Valuable Assets
A fantastic web design, captivating copy, and a solid team are nothing without its consumers. You can have top-notch work simply decaying because it isn’t being seen by those who matter to your business’s revenue.
How To Identify Your Target Market
Here are the 3 steps you need to take to redirect your business’s efforts:
1. Start With The Demographics
Find out the age, gender, income, and profession of your customers. You may have to make broad strokes to identify an ideal target audience, but the goal is to get your audience to fit 80% of what you write down for the demographics.
For example, your target audience may look like:
- Woman-owned business that offers a professional service, 35-50 years old, lives in the US, works remote, mother of 3 kids, and married
- 30-year old multi-generational company who the son is currently taking over, 35-45 years old, lives in the US, grew up in the company, married, goes into the office or company building for work, bilingual (usually in English and Spanish)
The key here… Get specific!
2. Get Into The Details
Use psychographics to pinpoint your customers’ lifestyles, values, and personality traits.
For example, if we were to take the woman-owned business listed above, her personality profile may include being sociable but introverted, determined to make this work, values family over money, and relationship-focused.
3. Uncover Their Values
Narrow your funnel by learning your customers’ attitude, knowledge, and response to your services.
If you aren’t digging down and getting to the root of who your customers are, it will be tough talking to them about what you can do to serve them better. Your customers want to believe you understand them and are willing to go the extra mile to solve their problems.
They want reliability, honesty, and value. Understanding everything about them from their age range to their preference in politics helps inform your marketing endeavors.
How To Talk To Your Target Audience
Now that you have your audience, you should be able to talk to them directly.
Demand Their Attention
Don’t be afraid to call your customers out! There’s no need to beat around the bush and evade talking to a smaller group of people because you’re afraid it will single others out. People are much more likely to perk up and pay attention when they feel seen, heard, and understood.
For example, instead of saying “All-Inclusive Legal Services For Texans,” you should say, “Are You The Victim Of A Drunk Driving Accident And Need Legal Representation?”
The point is, you may be a law office that serves all types of clients. However, if your main focus is representing drunk driving victims or their families, you need to say so upfront. Don’t be concerned with leaving others out by zooming in on a specific demographic.
Instead of spreading a net that’s too wide, you cast a net towards a smaller, but more quality audience.
Get To The Point
You don’t need to worry about using a ton of fluff copy or over-explaining yourself. Too much copy is off-putting and can confuse your customers. Stick to their pain points and how you can solve their problem. Speak their language and use every chance to write in a voice you think they would respond well to.
For example, your audience may have a wealth of experience and knowledge in the oil and gas industry. They know their profession at an extremely deep level of understanding and respond well to efficient copy. In this instance, try to use words and phrases that you know they’ll be familiar with, even if they’re technical.
As another example, you might know your audience is largely made up of bakers who are in their 20’s. Again, it’s okay to use wording or practical phrases as they relate to the market your customers are in.
Place The Spotlight On Them
In everything you write, place the focus on your customers rather than on yourselves. There are certainly some aspects of your business that customers want to know about.
However, this doesn’t mean you want them to forget that you’re there to help them. It’s helpful to use copy centered on the customer in your above-the-fold website copy. And use wording like “you” more often than “we”.
Set Your Sights On A More Refined Focus With Writers Who Can-Do
Whether your business is 5 months old or 50 years strong, you need to identify your target market and understand who you’re speaking with. We understand because we’ve helped businesses in all stages of growth get where they need to be through comprehensive copywriting services that include identifying your target audience
Have a quick deadline? No problem. We’ll work with you to deliver high-performing copy in a timely manner. Worried about being shut out of input? Not with us! We believe open communication is key to a successful partnership
What are you waiting for? Get started with us today.
