You betcha.  Knowing your target audience is the key to any successful small business.  Here’s a great post from Sivler Egg Media explaining why.

Why Is Understanding Your Target Audience So Important?

 

Many businesses think they know their target audience inside out. But if they took a test, how well do you think they would actually understand them?

Yesterday we spoke about how it’s really effective to create a balance between what is right for your business and what your audience wants. There’s no point in having a Facebook page if your audience isn’t primarily on Facebook, right?

There are so many things to consider when it comes to finding your target audience. And our post on it recently was so popular, that we’ve decided to expand on this topic more in the coming weeks. But for now, we bet you want to know why understand your target audience actually matters so much.

That’s why we’re here today.

 

What is a target audience?

 

When you type in “definition of target audience” into Google, this is what appears:

A particular group at which a product such as a film or advertisement is aimed.

Seems simple, doesn’t it?

If only.

I actually think the definition is the opposite to the one above. Today, a business doesn’t create a product and say, we’re going to aim it at X group of people. They find the group of people they target (the target audience) and create products they know their audience needs.

So it’s not as simple as a one-size-fits all approach. Your target audience can be made up of people who have different needs and goals, but come to your business because they all relate to something on some level.

Here at SilverEGG Media, we write long, detailed posts about particular topics within the digital marketing industry for two different audiences:

1. Our clients and other businesses looking for our services – through our content, we show them that we know what we’re talking about.
2. People within the industry who either work in it or have a strong interest in it – these people want to better themselves in their field, to learn new skills to improve.

So we try to find the balance between speaking to both audiences. But some businesses have two completely different audiences to write for.

Imagine if someone had an accident and you were partly responsible for it. If you told your friends about it, it would be much different to the story you told the insurance company, wouldn’t it? Because they’re two different types of audience – you tailor your story to fit the needs of each one. And it’s exactly the same for your business.

Your target audience is made up of people that can understand and engage with what you’re saying. They’re people who come to you for a reason. They’re people who will keep coming back to you, and bring new people to see what you have to offer too.

 

 

Four Reasons Why Understanding Your Target Audience Is So Important

 

You can solve their problems

 

Why do you want people to visit your business? There could be many reasons – entertainment, advice, services – but ultimately you’re doing one thing for them.

Solving a problem.

Whenever people visit a website, they’re looking to find something. It could be something as direct as someone visiting a wedding cake website, because they need a wedding cake. Or they may not even know they’re looking for something – they’re just hoping to find it.

Once you identify why your audience is coming to your website, you can make some really good choices. You can decide what categories you’re going to talk about and what information you’re going to include. You can create and make a list of resources to give to them. You can do everything possible to thoroughly solve their problem, each time they visit your site.

 

It’s the key to effectiveness

 

Unfortunately, it’s not enough to just know your audience. Digital marketing today is about building strong, loyal, lasting relationships with people. Which is why it’s so useful to have an understanding of them.

You can understand them as real people, get to know them, find out what they like and where they go when they’re online. And that, dear readers, is the key to effectiveness.

Everything can be planned around them. From what time you send them an e-newsletter, to when you publish a blog post, to when you interact with them on social media.

Think about it – if your audience is predominantly busy mums with small children, is first thing in the morning or early evening going to be the right time to connect with them?

Not really.

But if you target commuters, early evenings and first thing in the morning would be the ideal time to connect as they browse their phones on the way to work. By understanding their habits and behaviours, you can maximise your appeal.

 

It enables you to define your value proposition

 

In the same way as solving problems, understanding your target audience also allows you to decide what your value proposition is going to be – what can you offer them? Why should they visit you?

Your value proposition can be seen to define what your business does, uniquely. If you find this difficult to do, it means you don’t understand your audience. Because when you do understand them, it’s easy. You know what you want; therefore you can package it to them. And what you give to them depends on what they want.

 

You’ll see results faster

 

Marketing takes time. And it’ll take even longer if you don’t know who your audience is. It’s no good assuming things about them. If you create content based around their assumptions, your audience will become lost. They’ll be alienated and forget to visit your site.

That’s why the aim with most of our content is to teach people – that means it appeals to both of our audiences. The more you appeal to your audience, the more it will grow.

 

Conclusion

 

Understanding your target audience is an ongoing task. People are always becoming interested in different topics and looking for new things – but you can be more successful and achieve more simply by understanding them. Keep with up them, and they might just stick with you.

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