Would you make a $5,000 bet? What if you didn't know what you were betting on? What if you didn't know what you had to do to win the bet? I'm guessing your answer to this proposition is "no." Why would you? It would be a waste of money and time. You can't win that bet! Nevertheless, we see people bet $5,000 or more on marketing ideas that cannot hit the target. They won't get the desired response for a very simple reason. The person doing the marketing has never identified their target market. I have a good friend who is a business owner, and I frequently ask him what his target market is. He never gives me a straight answer. The last time I asked him, one of his markets was about as well defined as saying he's targeting people with skin! (FYI - That is not a target market!) Businesses that are successful invest the time, energy and money to define a specific market that they want to work with and that needs their products and services. This may not be a fun project on the front end, but it pays huge dividends over time. Defining your target market makes all your marketing decisions easier. You know what the headlines on your marketing materials should be because you know what your target market wants. You know which publications to advertise in because you know what your target market reads. I'm not saying you have to be limited to one target market. You could have a few depending on specific solutions that you have and the people who need them. But it's important to limit your targets so you can attack them in an organized, strategic manner. Those who do not have a well-defined target market waste money spreading their message to people who will never use their product or service. The more tightly defined your market is, the easier it will be to reach your ideal prospect more often and directly. If you don't know your target market, you're making a bad marketing bet! It's almost impossible to hit a target if you don't know what or where the target is. I know some people get lucky, but I would not risk my marketing budget on luck. When you're defining your target market, it's all about how you slice the data or group. You can do it in a variety of ways and not any one way is "right." The important part is that you start. Here are some common methods for separating people into target markets. The most common way to identify your target is with demographic information - the standard age, income, sex and location data. This is a very easy way to look at a group of people and decide which ones you want to work with. (FYI - In many industries, business owners and managers find that the majority of their clients are within seven years of their own age, plus or minus.) The problem with only using demographics is that this method may not provide a match that's precise enough for your solution. For example, if you targeted my neighborhood, you would have people who range in age from 30 to 80. You would have people with and without children. You would have retirees and people who are in their peak earning years. That is not a sufficient target for most businesses. It's too broad if you only use location. Another way to separate potential clients into a target market is by activities or hobbies. This can be a very strong method for identifying people with similar needs and desires. You could target people who belong to the local yacht club. These prospects are not all the ìsameî but they do have at least some similar characteristics. You can target people based on usage. Packaged goods companies often identify customers based on high, medium or low use. But don't be fooled. Sometimes low-use markets are the most profitable! These are some of the ways to slice your market and identify your target. The key to developing a successful target market is first identifying it and then contacting it. More Thoughts On Target Marketing Those who don't have a target market are using the pasta principle. They throw it against the wall to see what sticks. This is a tremendous waste of time, energy and money. It's much easier to reach your market when you define it. I do think that you need to invest time and energy looking for new markets and new opportunities, but that happens well after you have saturated your target market. Also, when you are defining your target market, you need to make sure it matches your core values. Sometimes companies make decisions based on revenue only to discover later that they don't like working with those people because they don't have matching values. The target you select could have great income potential. But if you don't like the people, it will never work. Martin R. Baird is president of Advisor Marketing, a full-service marketing management firm that provides a variety of services to financial advisors to help them improve their marketing methods and increase revenues, including seminars and conference speaking engagements on such topics as referrals, marketing, client communication and transitioning to fee. The firm's Web site, www.advisormarketing.com, offers free marketing information and tools for financial advisors, including a free weekly e-mail newsletter. Baird is author of "The 7 Deadly Sins of Advisor Marketing," a book that offers easy-to-implement marketing ideas for advisors. Baird may be reached at mbaird@advisormarketing.com or by telephone at (480) 990-1775 or (800) 279-1775. Visit www.advisormarketing.com for marketing tactics that will help your business grow. |
