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Do you know who your company’s target audience is (note: there may be more than one)? If yes, do you know the most effective and efficient ways to reach them?

Having a clear and strategic picture of the target audience before beginning any marketing initiative can be the difference between a machine gun approach that spreads your message far and wide (and incurs a lot of waste) and a campaign that lands where it needs to and generates results. The goal in defining target audiences is to identify and understand them and map how they align with the niche you serve so you can dominate it.

The GRIT team is offering up some tips on how to better understand target audiences and reach them, so your business can see higher conversion rates and better return on investment (ROI).

Identifying Your Audience

Your target audience is the specific group of individuals you want to reach with your marketing initiatives. It is important to identify your target audience so your brand can reach the right people with the right message. Digging into the details to get a clear picture of the audiences can make a big impact on your brand. When working to identify your primary target audience, ask yourself these questions.

• Who do I need to speak to (specifically)? Knowing exactly who you need to reach will allow you to better craft your message to fit their wants and needs. Do you need to speak with youth, adults, or the elderly? Are you speaking to individuals who make $30,000/year or $100,000/year? Having an answer to these types of questions will help you better understand your target audience and what’s important to them.
• Speaking of what’s important to them – What are their motivations for making decisions? Understanding the “why” behind your target audience’s decisions will allow you to better position your messaging to appeal to their motives. At the end of the day, how your brand makes their life easier is the question that needs to be answered.
• How does my company/organization deliver particular value based on their wants and needs? Knowing exactly how your company’s products or services fulfill your target audience’s wants and needs will increase the likelihood of higher conversion rates and better ROI.
• How/where do my audiences get their information? Understanding how and where your audiences get their information will help you better reach them through appropriate channels. Smart planning will ensure you’re reaching your audiences where they are with the right message.
• What am I asking them to do/what action do I want them to take? Knowing exactly what action you want your audience to take will help you craft a precise call to action (CTA) and can also help ensure that the action you want them to take aligns with their decision-making motives, wants, and needs.

Remember, target audiences are determined through comprehensive audience research, not opinions of who you or your employees think your audiences are. As a business, being able to adapt and go after the people who really want to buy from you, even if they are not who you expected, will help your marketing initiatives succeed.

Reaching Your Audience

When you clearly have identified who you want to talk to, the next step is to find out where they are and the best way to reach them with messaging that resonates. But how?

• Create an engaging and attention-grabbing message. Individuals see thousands of advertisements a day. For your message to reach your target audience, it is going to have to be unique. Using the right words, call to actions, and graphics can significantly increase the chances of your message reaching your target audience.
• Focus on your target audience’s needs. In most cases, customers don’t care about your vision statement or company history. They want to know how you can help make their lives easier. Crafting your message around their needs and how your product or service can solve their problems will appeal to your target audience.
• Build trust and credibility. Creating trust and credibility with your audience, especially when they are new, is key to the success and growth of a business. Using the right tone, wording and even imagery can make your company trustworthy and credible. Building these attributes with your target audience will allow you to reach them with your messaging because they will be more likely to listen to a company they trust.
• Talk with your target audience. Connecting with customers on a personal level and in a conversational tone will make them feel as if you understand their needs and will help you reach them with your messaging.

Defining and reaching your target audience takes time and research. If you still feel overwhelmed by the process, reach out to our team today to learn how we can help you set up your marketing strategies and tactics for success!