Master Your Target Customer in 5 Minutes or Less

Mastering your target customer is incredibly important to your business. When you understand your target customer, it can help you make vital decisions when it comes to your products, your customer communication, and your marketing strategy. Your target customer determines how you want to reach out to your target audience and what you want to share with them. These best practices will help you master your target customer in five minutes or less.

Analyze Your Data

Platforms like Google Analytics, Facebook Insights, and Social Media Analytics can all provide you with vital information about your target demographic. Those platforms will offer an assessment of the people who are already consuming your content and how they're interacting with it. This may include:

• Age 
• Location
• Spending power, including a look at disposable income
• The interests consumers have, not just related to your business, but outside it
• The challenges your consumers face, which can help you assess how your business can answer those challenges
• The stage of life your consumers are most often in
• The size of your target customer’s business, if you're a B2B company
• Whether your target is the key decision-maker or someone who can help influence the key decision-maker at their company

Your tools can provide you with an immediate look at customer demographics. Understanding and analyzing those demographics, however, can tell you more about your consumers. 

Suppose, for example, that you are a sporting goods store. You discover that the majority of your consumers are men and women between the ages of 25 and 40. Upon closer examination, you find that their interests include various athletic pursuits and parenting. As a result, you may learn that your consumers are often parents--and that you have tools that can offer them better solutions for enjoying a workout with their children.    

Engage in Social Listening

One of the most effective ways to get to know your target audience is engaging in social listening. Monitor keywords and hashtags. Engage with your followers. Don't just post information that you think they will find interesting. Instead, listen to what consumers have to say. Respond to their comments. Many consumers will have a more positive opinion of a brand that interacts directly with them. 

Post content that invites a response or a call to action that consumers can respond to immediately. It can also help grow your audience. Eighty-five percent of consumers will recommend your business after a positive online interaction. 

Check Out the Competition

In addition to listening on your social media channels or checking out the hashtags your business has created, check out the competition. What social networks do your competitors use? How many followers do they have? Is their social media page growing rapidly, or are they struggling to build their following? 

A quick look at your competitors' stats can tell you whether your target customers are using a specific platform, which can help you make the decision about whether it's a good platform for you. You may also want to ask questions like:

• How often do your competitors post on social media? What about their blogs?
• How much do they engage with followers and readers? Do they connect with them regularly, or expect their readers to passively take care of themselves?
• Do their websites have an FAQ section? If so, what questions are their customers asking? 

After you look at your competitors' content, consider what you're offering that they are not. Your niche will not be exactly the same as your competitors'--but you may find that your competitors can offer some guidance about the corners of the market you're missing out on. A quick analysis of your direct competitors can help you identify your target customer and uncover their pain points, including the ones your competitors are already addressing. 

Mastering your target customer is a great way to enhance your marketing strategy. When you understand your target customer, you will get a better idea of their pain points, their struggles, and your place in their lives. You can then customize your marketing materials, from your TV commercials to your blog posts, to meet the needs of that audience. 

Luckily, mastering your target customer doesn't have to be time-consuming. With these strategies, you can take a close look at exactly who your target audience is and what they need in a few short minutes. Working with a media partner can also provide you with a better understanding of your target customer and exactly what that customer expects as they connect with your business.