I work with marketing and branding businesses every day. The owners and managers are always very smart. And they frequently have great ideas for how to communicate their unique message into the community.
But one thing they often fail at is crafting their message to the right audience. They tend to think their target audience is just like them. So when they see a website, a brochure, or an ad, they think that if they like it, everyone else will (or if they don’t like it, no one else will). But marketing is not about what you like or dislike.
While sometimes your likes are shared by the target audience, in my experience that is usually not the case. What makes you YOU (and successful at what you do) is generally not the makeup of John Q Public. While owners/managers tend to be very detail oriented about their enterprise, most of the rest of the world thinks in more esoteric terms.
The answer to this dilemma? Have a laser sharp focus on who your audience is, and what it takes to get their attention. You can’t communicate effectively if you don’t understand who you’re talking to.
Create a target “profile”. If your audience is potential customers, look to your existing customers to see what a great one looks like. Maybe they are 35 – 50 year old adults with 2+ children, one or both parents is college educated (one of whom has a professional occupation), and who live in the city. In addition to demographics, think psychographics. Are they committed to certain humanitarian causes, do they have a certain political persuasion, do the tend to be religious or spiritual? The better you understand your target audience, the more effective you you can be at crafting your message, and determining the best vehicles to deliver that message. King Print & Promo has lots of experience figuring out who your customers are, and helping you to reach them. Contact us today to get started.
Remember; the target is not you!
