When developing brands, lots of new business owners will tell me that their target audience is "everyone". It's understood to want everyone's business at first, but this is not practical and will give you headaches at the end of the day. Your brand is NOT for everyone.
While it may seem like a daunting task, understanding who your customers are and what they want is essential to developing a strong brand identity and growing your customer base. In this blog post, we'll explore why it's so important to know your target audience and how you can start identifying your ideal customers.
So first...
What is your target audience, and why is it important??
TARGET AUDIENCE is the crowd that your brand is primarily serving. It is essentially who you are targeting in your content, marketing and products.
When hearing that for the first time, you still may give a broad answer that doesn't quite highlight the things you need to know. Even if your audience IS broad, let me tell you why and how to narrow that down, to make the most of your brand awareness and marketing.
Why:
By understanding exactly who your customers are, you can tailor your messaging and outreach to resonate with them on a deeper level. This can help you attract more qualified leads, increase engagement, and drive conversions.
How:
Focus on your niche. It isn't just "Selling hair" or "Selling clothes". Define your brand's purpose first! Know the exact value that you're bringing to your field.
Analyze your competition. No one likes to talk about it publicly, but you HAVE to look at who you're competing with. Don't be arrogant to think you have none. Look at who your competitors are targeting and if that's working for them. Analyze their weaknesses and strengths to find a gap in the market that will make consumers choose you.
Create an ideal customer's profile. Create a customer's persona that includes demographic information, such as age, gender, income, and location, as well as psychographic information, such as interests, values, and personality traits.
Use data to refine the audience. Use analytics tools to track website and social media engagement to learn more about your audience's behaviors and interests. Use this data to refine your target audience and create more targeted marketing campaigns. Having a Wix website makes this super easy!
Remember to continually evaluate and adjust your target audience as your business grows and evolves.
Why can't my target audience be "Everyone"
I know you've heard the phrase "All money ain't good money! Here are some points as to why your target audience shouldn't be "everyone"
It dilutes your message. When trying to please everyone, your message won't come across as clear as it should. Your marketing materials will lack the specificity and nuance needed to resonate with a particular audience. By targeting a specific group, you can create more tailored messaging that speaks directly to their needs and interests.
It's not practical. Marketing to a broad audience required a lot of time, effort and money if you are serious about your marketing. It's better to focus your efforts on a specific group of people who are most likely to be interested in your services/products.
You won't stand out. When you try to appeal to everyone, you're competing with everyone else who is doing the same thing. It's hard to stand out in a crowded marketplace when you're not offering anything unique or tailored to a specific audience. By targeting a specific group, you can differentiate yourself from the competition and carve out a niche for your brand.
It's not sustainable: Trying to appeal to everyone is not sustainable in the long run. It's not possible to be everything to everyone, and eventually, your brand will lose focus and direction. By targeting a specific audience, you can create a strong brand identity and build a loyal customer base that will sustain your business over time.
Your customers are part of your brand identity! They are who is representing your brand, and passing along the message.
Most new businesses fail because they did not discover the inner-elements of their brand before putting it out there. This includes learning your target audience.
What objectives and goals customers have as it relates to your offering? What kind of strategic aspirations or hopes they have?
What do they fear because of those problems? How does it impact them internally? What emotions & feelings they go through?
What they desire to experience? Imagine what would be the best case scenario. List the opposite of their problems & fears.
What are the problems your customers face before they can get what they want? What are their pain-points and core challenges?
Book a Discovery Workshop to define your brand's purpose, position, plans, voice and personality. We will go over all of this plus more. Let's get your brand launched the right way!