Tuesday, February 26, 2008

Why Knowing Your Customers Can Make All The Difference

Most expert marketers and business owners would tell you that in order to be successful in your marketing campaign, be it posters or postcards or even flyers, the very first thing you should do is to define your target market.

You’re probably thinking, why choose a target market? Why not focus on everyone so that you’ll have a better chance of catching people who’ll be interested in what you offer? Why limit yourself to a group? Everyone can benefit from your product or service anyway so why exclude anyone?

I know it’s very tempting indeed to widen your reach especially when you think that you’re just wasting your money if somebody won’t be able to know your offer just because you exclude that market. But being a jack-of-all-trades to so many people can be a liability rather than a plus. Choosing a target market helps you to narrow down your attention, making it easier for you to provide a more customized poster printing ad or full color postcards that are tailor made to your prospective clients’ needs.

For starters, you’ll likely to have more savings because you’d have spent your dollars wisely on a marketing campaign that really works to your advantage.

You have to remember that advertising means having to run your campaign not just one or two times. You need to run it at least 6 to 7 times before your message can sink in with your target customers. If you don’t narrow down your target base, imagine having to scour places and locations where you can put your ad so that enough people can see it 7 times! And I’m not even going to talk about the amount of people who would actually be willing to try your products and services. Whew! That’s a lot of dollars that you’re going to spend, and you don’t even have an exact location where to place your ads.

With a defined target group, you can pinpoint the places they usually go to, or the publications they are likely to read, and so you can put your ad there for more exposure to the people that would actually buy from you.

Second, if you identify a target market, you’ll be able to identify a more focused benefit or offer that can solve a particular issue or concern of your prospects.

Don’t go egotistical on me now. You know that your customers don’t give a hoot about you. Their only concern is how your product or service will benefit them. What’s in it for me? That’s the ultimate question that your target audience would like to know. With a targeted market, you can establish a more personal content that would cater to the needs and wants of your potential clients.

Lastly, getting to know more of your target clients can help you provide a better offer that would benefit both you and your customers.

So don’t be afraid to limit your market. Rather than losing profits, identifying your target market can help you gain your prospects’ trust which can give you the opportunity to grow your business.

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