How to Find Your Target Market in 3 Steps

How to Find Your Target Market in 3 Steps

 

How to Find Your Target Market in 3 Steps

Now that you know WHO you are as a business and WHAT you are selling and what you are giving away for free, we get to move on to the best part: target market.

The best part? Yes, the best part. The whole reason you are in business is to help people and then to make money, right? Well, your customers are integral in that equation. If you really want your business to grow, you need to know about them and how your product makes their life better. Also, knowing your target market will help you in creating your business plan because you will know who you are talking to and how to communicate with them.

Talking about this on broad terms sometimes distances us from who our customer really is. So, for this exercise, I want you to think about one real-life person who embodies your target market, then give her a name. For this article, we will call her Melissa.

1. Demographics. What does Melissa look like?

Demographics are the physical characteristics of your customer. You need to know Melissa’s age, gender, family size, income, marital status, occupation, social media preferences, daily activities, where she lives, where she shops, etc… The more that you can know about her the better. Knowing Melissa’s demographics will help you understand her and what she spends her time doing. This is important when trying to market to her. If you know what she’s doing and when, then you will be able to easily choose how to communicate with her.

Let’s say that Melissa is 32, married and a mom to 3. She checks Facebook daily, but spends most of her social media time on Instagram. She shops at Nordstrom and Pottery Barn.

So, if I am a boutique family photographer, I know that I am going to put my social media efforts to Instagram and occasionally Facebook. If I do a giveaway, I will focus on shops like Nordstrom or Pottery Barn.

Did you see how knowing exactly who Melissa, our target audience is, instantly clarifies the other decisions in our business? Great. Now on to the next step.

2. Psychographics. What motivates Melissa?

Psychographics are the reasons that Melissa is doing what she is doing. You need to ask what are her aspirations, frustrations and challenges? What does she want and what is keeping her from getting what she wants? These are pain points. These pain points are what causes her to make decisions. Melissa has a problem and if you can figure out how you solve that problem, you will be on your way to success, my friend.

Let’s say you sell women’s clothing, think about Melissa. Being a busy mom to 3, she is always on the move. Her challenge is to stay looking put together but to do so with minimal time. So, you could create outfit suggestions for her on your site and on Instagram, so that she doesn’t have to take the time to put together her own outfit. It is quick, easy and she feels better knowing that a professional has already put her stamp of approval on it. See how we did that?

3. Solution. How do you solve Melissa’s problems?

All businesses exist to solve a problem. What problem do you solve? Think about the questions you answered in the psychographics section. How is your product the solution to Melissa’s frustrations and challenges? How can you give her what she wants? Once you find this connection, you are winning!

In the example above, Melissa’s pain point is that she wanted to look put together in a hurry, you solved the problem by providing easy outfits that are stylist approved. Focusing on the solutions, makes it easy for a customer to buy from you.

Now that I’ve told you all about Melissa and How to Find Your Target Market in 3 Steps, it is time to figure out your very own target market. It is the third step in our Better Business series. Look out for step 4: Building a Business Plan coming on Thursday.

Want to be a part of the business class after party? Head on over to our private Facebook group where we are discussing all things faith, motherhood and business.