Reasons to Select Specific Target Markets and Target Customers
Who Are Your Target Customers? What Is Your Target Market?? The Reason Is That?
For Four Years In 1994 And 1998, Amazon Sold Books. Even At That Time, Amazon Sold Only Online. In 1994 It Was An Online Market And A Niche. In Other Words, Amazon Had A Very Well-Selected And Specific Target Market. Good Ol’ Jeff Started Expanding Only After Four Years Of Hard Work To Establish A Successful Organization. Today, 24 Years Later, Amazon Has Gained The Ability To Target Everyone.
In This Post, You Will Learn About Target Markets And Target Audiences. It Will Also Show You How To Identify The Markets Your Business Needs To Focus On In Order To Thrive.
What Is A Target Market?
A Target Market Is A Specific Selected Consumer Segment That A Company Plans To Offer A Product Or Service. Identifying Your Target Market Is An Essential Step In The Development Of Your Products, Services, And Marketing Efforts Used To Promote Them. In Addition, The Target Market Generally Includes The End Users Of The Product Or Service.
“The Goal Of Marketing Is To Know And Understand That A Product Or Service Is Being Sold To The Right Customer,” Said Peter F. Drucker, Advisory Consultant. It Is Important To Understand This.
To Reduce Complaints, You Need To Create Product, Service, And Marketing Campaigns For Specific And Clear Groups Of People. If Not? It Will Be A Product Or Service That Does Not Fully Satisfy The Needs And Desires Of Customers. However, It Is More Likely That The Product Will Not Be Sold.
Marketing Author Philip Kotler Said, “There Is Only One Winning Strategy. “It Is To Carefully Select The Target Market And Provide A Good Product To That Target Market.” This Target Market Can Be Divided Into Geography, Demographics, And Psychology.
Target Market Example
McDonald’s Is The World’s Most Popular Fast Food Brand, And Is A Great Example Of Demographic Target Marketing. Although McDonald’s Has Grown To A Wide Range Of Markets And Potential Customers, It Has Created Dedicated Products And Marketing Campaigns For Each Segment.
For Example, One Of The Key Target Markets Is Children. The Division Offers A Play Area, A Happy Meal Made Of Toys, And A Marketing Campaign Featuring Disney Characters And Ronald McDonald. Targeted Marketing And Aggressive Pricing Have Helped McDonald’s Maintain Its Largest Share Of The Fast Food Market In The United States.
But Everything Is Constantly Changing. McDonald’s Sales Have Declined In Recent Years And Have Had To Respond To Changes In Target Markets.
Let’s Find Out What Happened.
In 2016, The Millennials Surpassed The Baby Boomers And Became The Largest Generation In The United States. Generations Obsessed With Avocados Pay More Attention To Healthy Foods Than Previous Generations.
In Response To Changes In The Target Market, McDonald’s Updated Its Products And Services. That’s Why McDonalds Today Offers Healthier, Fresher Menus And More Premium Coffee Products.
What Is A Target Audience?
The Term “Target Customer” Is Narrower Than “Target Market”. In Particular, It Refers To A Group Of Consumers Targeted For Marketing Messaging. Advertising Expert Tom Duncan Explains: The Target Audience Is “A Group That Is Likely To Respond Positively To The Brand Message.” The Target Audience May Or May Not Be The End User Of The Product, But The Target Audience For The Marketing. In Order To Communicate Effectively With Your Target Audience, You Need To Understand Who Your Target Audience Is And What Their Real Needs And Desires Are.
In Addition, Author And Marketing Expert Robert G. Allen Said, “Whatever Your Product Is, You Need To Teach Your Customers How To Use It Effectively In Their Lives.” And Remember, “Customers Are Buying Products Because They Need Them.”
Target Audience Example
Let’s Look Again At The McDonald’s Case Discussed Above.
One Of McDonald’s Main Target Markets Is Children, But There Is A Big Problem With This Target Market. Children Have No Purchasing Power. In Other Words, Buying McDonald’s Products Is Not Done By Children, But By Their Parents. That’s Why McDonald’s Makes Happy Meal To Serve In The Target Market For Children. To Be Precise, We Create An Advertisement That Promotes Happy Meal Targeting The Parents Of Children.
So, What Do Children Care Most About? It Is A “Toy”. But The Toy Is Not Even Mentioned In The Second Half Of The Ad. When It Comes To Happy Meal, Children May Be McDonald’s Target Markets, But They Are Not The Target Audience For Advertising.
Difference Between Target Market And Target Audience
Target Market And Target Audience Are Terms That Are Similar And Overlap. However, There Are Major Differences Between These Two Terms. It Mainly Relates To The Real Impact On The Business.
The Target Market Influences All Decisions Made By SMEs. Products Or Services Are Developed To Meet The Needs And Desires Of The Target Market. Packaging And Pricing Are Made To Appeal To The Target Market. And The Sales Process Is Structured Around The Shopping Preference Of The Target Market.
However, The Target Customer Only Influences Decisions Related To The Specific Marketing Message. For This Reason, The Target Market Usually Consists Of The End Users Of The Product Or Service, While The Target Customer May Or May Not.
Similarities Between Target Market And Target Audience
Often The Target Audience For Marketing Is Often The Same As The Group Of Target Markets.
Yoga Leggings Brands, For Example, Can Target Unmarried Women, 24-34 Years Old, Who Regularly Go To The Gym Regularly. Here, The Target Audience Will Be The Same As The Target Market.
However, Marketers Can Deal More With Their Target Customers. For Example, Marketers Can Decide To Use Instagram Ads To Reach Their Target Market. Yoga Users And Users Who Follow Accounts Such As Yoga Peration Are Recently Buying Products Online. He Lives In Portland, Oregon And May Also Be Selected For Value Valuation Of Fairtrade Products.
Now Let’s Talk About Why Targeting Is So Important To Success.
The Importance Of Targeting
Many People Think That Throwing A Wide Net Is The Best Way To Catch More Fish.
However, The Most Successful Fishermen Plan Ahead Of Time What Kind Of Fish They Will Catch. A Net Is Made By Targeting Fish Of A Specific Size. And You Know Exactly Where To Catch Fish And When To Strategically Place Your Nets To Catch Them.
For This Reason, Targeted Advertisements Are Effective Nearly Twice As Effective As Non-Target Advertisements. Identifying A Clearly Selected Target Market And Target Audience Acts Like A Magnifying Glass Focused On The Sun’s Rays.
“It’s Difficult To Get The Message To The Average 35-Year-Old Middle-Class Working Mom,” Said Elizabeth Gardner. “It’s Much Easier To Get The Message To Jennifer, Who Works As A Legal Assistant. I’m Always Looking For A Quick And Healthy Dinner, Looking For A Way To Spend More Time With My Kids And Less Time Doing Chores.”
With Clearly Selected Target Markets, Every Detail Of A Product Or Service Can Be Perfectly Tailored To Your Needs And Needs. As A Result, Customer Satisfaction Is Incredibly High And You Can Get Very Positive Feedback. And With Good Target Audience Selection, Every Detail Of Your Marketing Campaign Can Be Perfectly Tailored To Appeal To Your Interests, Emotions And Worldview.
If You Know How To Write Authentic Marketing Messages To Your Target Audience, You Will Achieve Higher Conversion Rates And Build Stronger Brands. Because The Real Madman Inspiration Howard Gossage Says, “No One Reads Advertisements. People Read What They Care About. Sometimes It’s An Advertisement.”
But That’s Not All.
Ray Velez, CTO Of Razorfish, Said, “Marketers Can Get Better Results From Digital Marketing By Leveraging The Enormous Amounts Of Data In The Digital Age Of Targeting.” The Data Is Vast. The Targeting Capabilities Of Today’s Digital Marketing Tools Are Amazing. If You Want To Know For Yourself, You Only Need 5 Minutes To Create A Facebook Ad.
So How Do You Take Advantage Of This Amazing Feature?
Selection Of Target Market
Now That You Have An Accurate Understanding Of The Definition Of Your Target Market And Target Audience, Let’s Take A Look At How To Identify The Market Segments You Need To Target.
Step 1: Identify The Key Benefit That Your Business Provides
If You Understand Correctly, Your Ideal Target Market Will Be Revealed. It Starts With The End Result That Meets The Needs And Desires Of The Customer.
Marketing Manager Philip Kotler Said, “Traditional Marketing Isn’t About Selling What You Create, It’s About Knowing What To Build.” It Is A Technology That Identifies And Understands Customer Needs To Create Solutions That Provide Satisfaction To Customers And Benefit Producers And Stakeholders.”
You Should Be Able To Answer Questions Very Clearly, Such As:
● What Problems Do You Solve?
● What To Meet?
● And What Desires Do You Satisfy?
“People Don’t Want To Buy A Quarter-Inch Drill,” Said Theodore Levitt, An Economist And Harvard Professor. I Want To Buy A 1/4 Inch Hole.”
So You Shouldn’t Define What You Do Or How You Do It, Such As “Selling Home Fitness Equipment Online”.
Instead, You Should Choose What Results You’re Going To Deliver To Your Customers, Such As “Improves Confidence By Helping You Lose Weight And Stay Fit.” You Should Also Make It Easy To Buy Exercise Equipment Online. It Helps You Exercise Comfortably At Home.
A Good First Example Of A Company Selling Product Merits Instead Of Product Features Is An IPod Ad. The Main Feature Of The IPod Is That It Can Store 1GB Of MP3 Files. However, Apple Did Not Promote This Feature. Instead, It Emphasized The Benefits Of The Feature. “1,000 Songs In Your Pocket”
Once You Have A Clear Picture Of The Benefits Of What You Do, You Can See Who Needs Your Product Or Service The Most. In Apple’s Case, The Target Markets Are Clearly Early Adopters Of New Technologies, Those Who Have A Large Collection Of Music And Who Like To Listen To Music On The Go.
From Here, Apple Can Dig Deeper Into Its Target Market By Testing Small Groups Of People And Products That Fit These Basic Parameters.
Whose Needs And Desires Are You Meeting? Are You Helping Middle-Aged Overweight Men Lose Weight? Helping Older People Maintain Garden Care? Helping A Young Dad Save Time Using Cooking Tools In The Kitchen?
Step 2: Refine Your Target Market
At This Point, You Need To Have A Basic Understanding Of Who Will Benefit From The Product Or Service. Here You Need To Narrow Down The Market Segments You Want To Target. Be As Specific As Possible.
First, You Need To Select The Demographics Of Your Target Market. Demographics Is A Specific Part Of The Population. You Can Segment Your Target Market Using Demographics Such As Age, Location, Gender, Marital Or Family Status, Occupation, Income Level, And Education Level.
Next, You Need To Identify The Psychological Characteristics Of The People Who Benefit Most From Your Product Or Service. In Psychology, Attitudes, Values, Interests, Lifestyle, And Behavior Are Psychological Attributes Of Consumers. Once You’ve Done This, You Need To Clearly Define The Consumer’s Persona. For More Information On Configuring Consumer Personas, See Shopify’s Guide To “How To Build Consumer Personas For Better Marketing”.
Step 3: Stay Objective
Step 3 Is Probably The Most Difficult Part Of The Process. Avoiding Assumptions Can Be Very Difficult. Moreover, Many People Search For, Remember, And Interpret Information In A Way That Unintentionally Confirms Existing Beliefs Or Hypotheses. This Is Called Confirmation Bias.
If You’re Not Careful, Prejudice Can Completely Ruin Your Attempts To Clearly Select Your Target Market And Target Audience, Which In Turn Can Result In Huge Damage To Your Business. And This Happens All The Time.
Indeed, According To CB Insights, 42% Of Startups Fail Not Because Of Lack Of Funds, But Because Of Lack Of Market Demand.
In Other Words, Companies Fail Because They Are Blindly Passionate About Their Products Or Services. The Reason Is That We Forgot To Test Whether There Is A Real Need In The Market.
Another Mistake Companies Make Is To Do A Lot Of Research On A Product Or Service, But Not To Test It.
Research Is Forward-Looking, And Real Tests Can Prove. It Doesn’t Matter How Many People Say They Will Use Or Buy Our Products Or Services. It Only Matters How Many People “Really” Buy The Product Or Service.
So Don’t Ask People If They Like The Product Or If They Want To Buy It. You Can Create An MVP (Minimum Viable Product) And Then Sell It. This Is The Only Way To Know For Sure If The Market Really Needs It (Demand).
Conclusion: It Is Assumed That The Target Market Does Not Care About The Business, Brand, Product, Or Service, Unless Otherwise Proven Otherwise.
Step 4: Evaluate Your Market Segments
Now That You Have Insight Into Who You Plan To Sell To, You Need To Determine If It Is Worth Serving The Market.
Ask Yourself The Following Questions.
● Are There Enough People In The Target Market To Continue Our Business?
● Do You Have Money To Buy Our Products Or Services In This Market Group?
● Will Our Customers Repurchase Over And Over Again, Or Should We Keep Stopping The Influx Of New Customers?
● Is There A Lot Of Competition In This Market Group?
● If Not, Why?
● If So, What Sets It Apart From Competitors? Why Should Customers Buy From Us?
● How Accessible Is This Target Market?
Once Again, Research Is So Far Only Possible For “I”. To Answer These Questions Definitively, You Need To Do Real Tests That Actually Participate In Your Target Market.
Summary
A Clearly Selected Target Market And Target Audience Are Essential To The Long-Term Success Of Any Business. The Scattered-Store Approach Is Only Possible So Far. It Is Possible If You Manage To Cross The Starting Line.
So, You Need To Try To Understand Who Your Business Is Serving And Why They Should Care. Also, Remember That The Only Way To Know Who To Target Is By Testing.
After Selecting A Target Market, You Need To Make Sure That Your Product Or Service Meets Your Needs Or Desires. Then, Select A Target Target Audience-A Specific Group To Target The Marketing Message. Remember That Throwing A Wide Net Is A Small Business Sentence Of Death. So Be Specific.
