How to Determine Who Your Target Audience is

Lyric’s Marketing Tip #14 for 2014:
How to Determine Who Your Target Audience is

As I get out and network with potential customers, I am blown away at the variety of businesses out there! I mean, wow! How can one marketing message fit all these people and cover the range of diversity? It can’t. You have heard me say before that targeting your audience for your business message is one of the first and key elements in building a powerful marketing strategy. You must know who your audience is and how to reach them.

Many business owners do not want to take the time or be out the expense of doing the work up front to discover who their target audience is and how to design their message accordingly. The idea of throwing out marketing and seeing what will stick just does not work anymore – and besides, it’s expensive! For a successful marketing program, you need to drill down to find out who needs your product or service, and how and where you can reach them.

In this week’s tip, I am going to share a simple spreadsheet and process that I use with my client to help them discover who they are marketing to and how to reach them.  I call it my Target List and you can download it here.

After you download the Target List, pour a cup of coffee and find a quiet room where you will not be disturbed, this is important think time and you need to focus.  Go through each column on the worksheet and brainstorm these questions, listing out your answers:

• Who are my customers? (Who do you want them to be?)
• What are their needs? (What is their pain/need/want/desire that you can solve?)
• Why do they want your product? (How does your product or service meet their need and give them what they want?)
• What problem does it solve for them? (How does your product or service solve their problem – what does it do for them?)
• Key words associated with your customer. (What are key words that relate to your customer and who they are, what they need/want?)
• What marketing channels will you use to syndicate your message?  (Where do you find your customer online?  What do they read, where do they play, what networks do they use? Etc.)

Going through this “targeting” exercise is not only good for marketing but also good for you and your business.  The huge benefit is it will help you build stronger and longer lasting relationships, after all, isn’t that what great marketing is all about?

If you need help on your marketing strategy, call Lyric Marketing!  We will help you identify who and where your best customers are and how to reach them most effectively.

Love and Peace!
Sandy