ffering great products or services doesn’t guarantee that people will buy what your business is selling. Now you need to market your products or services to potential customers. You can market your products to everyone, but casting a wide net doesn’t mean you’ll catch more sales. You need a target market. Determining your business’ target market will help you narrow down your focus so you can advertise your products to people who are likely to buy instead of wasting time and resources marketing to anyone and everyone. Follow the tips below to help your company choose the right one and develop a marketing strategy that works for you.
Determine Who Needs Your Products And Services
Your target market is the people who could benefit from your company’s products or services. One of the best ways to identify your target market is to start with what you’re offering. What problems or customer pain points does your product solve? What features and benefits do customers get by using your product? Once you’ve identified this, determine who would benefit the most from your product or service. The product might be helpful for everyone, but your target market is the people that would benefit the most from buying your product. Consider different demographics who have a need for your product or service. Factors to consider include:
- Location
- Age
- Gender
- Education
- Income level
- Occupation
- Marital status
- Ethnicity
- Lifestyle
- Interests & hobbies
- Values
Not only will researching demographics help you identify your target market, but also where those people turn for information.
Survey Your Current Customer Base
Another way to choose the right target audience is to look at your current customer base. If you’re already doing business, you may have access to data that can help you identify factors like customer demographics and buying preferences. Understanding your current customers can go a long way in accurately marketing your business to potential customers with similar preferences and needs.
Look At Your Competition's Target Market
You can also look to your competition for answers on where to target your marketing efforts. A business should know its competitors and other products and services on the market that compete with theirs. Not only should you look at what they offer, but who they market to and how they market their business. Start by researching your competitors’ websites, social media, and marketing materials to see if there’s any insight you can gain. They could be marketing to a specific segment of people that you missed or didn’t consider.
Analyze Your Industry's Target Markets
During your research, don’t forget to look within your own industry for insights into who to target. Search for industry publications, market reports, statistics, and other information that can help narrow down your desired viewers. You can also conduct market research on your own to gain insight into the right audience for your business.
Consider Niche Target Markets
As you start to choose the right target market, consider how to segment your audience into niches. Are there particular niches of people who would benefit from your product the most? What about specific geographic markets? These niche markets may deserve more of your attention as you plan out future marketing campaigns.
Continue to Evaluate Your Target Market
Picking your target market isn’t an exact science. Researching your customers, your competitors, and the market will help narrow your focus, but you may need to tweak your marketing efforts over time. After you choose a target market, go back and analyze your marketing campaigns. Are you focused on too many people? Not enough? Will these people benefit from our products? Are we focusing our marketing efforts through the right channels to reach our target market? A successful business is one that consistently analyzes its performance and its game plan to make sure it’s still on track.
The Benefit of A Target Market
Having a target market doesn’t mean you don’t sell to other people or that you’re excluding anyone who doesn’t fit a particular mold. Instead, it actually allows you to focus your marketing energy (and dollars) on those who are more likely to buy your products. You’ll maximize your efforts while still attracting other potential customers along the way. Kevin Payne is a personal finance and travel writer. His work has appeared on websites like Forbes Advisor, Investopedia, Credit Karma, and FinanceBuzz. He is the family travel and budget expert behind FamilyMoneyAdventure.com. Kevin lives in Cleveland, Ohio, with his wife and four kids.
