21.05.2014

Selecting your target audience

Selecting your target audience

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Marketing is and always has been about understanding your customer, their needs and how to reach them with the right proposition. It doesn’t matter if it is digital communications or more traditional routes. Of course your content must be relevant and in today’s environment you have many more opportunities to obtain information about your customers and prospects.

Your actions will depend upon your marketing objectives, however assuming that these fit some of the following categories:

  • Generate quality leads
  • Widen the customer base
  • Penetrate new markets
  • Strengthen existing markets
  • Build your brand
  • Defend your current position
  • Develop a leadership position.

Your starting point should be that of segmenting the market. You may argue that your product or service applies to a wide audience and that your business comes from all sorts of places but try this simple exercise:

  1. Look at your customer base current and ‘lost’
  2. Are there groups of customers/prospects clustered in specific geographic areas?
  3. Are there groups of customers who are seeking the same benefits?
  4. Are there groups of customers who display similar needs e.g. high volume, low pricing, those prepared to pay for value added, niche groups? Groups which are more profitable than others?
  5. Are there identifiable differences in benefits sought?
  6. Are there groups that generate more profit than others?

Concentrating your efforts and spend with customer groups where you can put your company in a strong position and generate more profitable business can only contribute towards achieving your objectives. Why would you chase business that doesn’t pay in the widest sense ie either profit, raising your profile, strengthening your position or all of these?

This process is called market segmentation, which you can undertake using the following criteria:

  • Benefits sought
  • Similarities between customers/prospects – this could be by size, sector, location
  • Identifiable differences in benefits sought
  • Distinct and recognisable characteristics – high volume, price sensitive, premium price, service standards, technology
  • Large enough to generate sufficient return
  • Accessible.

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www.reformcreative.co.uk | 0161 236 0054

An award-winning designer who has had work published in the most coveted D&AD annual. Educated to degree level with a BA (hons) in Design. Paul has 20 years in the design industry. Paul brings with…

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