The target market of your company is a group of customers that your product or service is aimed at. Knowing your target market enables you to form an effective marketing strategy that brings in new clients and increases profits. Right off the bat however you’ll have to determine whether you sell to consumers or to businesses.
Selling hardware supplies to adult men and women in your area would make your target market consumers whereas if you were selling corporate computer technology to small ad medium organizations means your target market would be businesses. The next step in defining your target market is to think about your ideal customer. It’s impossible to do business with everyone so narrowing your list is crucial.
You should identify the demographics and geographic area of the perfect customer. Think about their age, interests, career and behavior. All of these elements will help you build a great marketing plan that is targeted to the wants and needs of your target market. As you think about this target market also analyze if they are obtainable and willing to purchase your product or service.
As part of the evaluations step you will have to do some research into the neighborhoods that you plan to service. Find out if your ideal target market is close. Using census data can be a great way to figure out the exact size and specifications of your target market. Brick-and-mortar stores will likely have a much smaller, closer target market. On the other hand, online companies that can reach anywhere across the nation will have a larger audience to reach.
After you have completed your research and found a good target market, you must test that market. By hosting a free event or giving away samples of your product you can interact directly with interested customers. From there you can deduct whether the customers that show interest are the same ones in your target market. This testing phase could result in changes in your target market.
If you feel confident through your time and research that you have a target market defining, its time to start building your marketing plan. With a clear cut audience you will be able to craft messages that speak directly to them and incite them to explore you company and all it has to offer. A great example of a defined target market if you’re selling jewelry could be women between the ages of 25 and 35 that reside within 20 miles of your store and have a median income between 33,000 and 50,000.
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