Target Marketing 101

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It’s important to remember that the focus of marketing is people.  Many businesses focus on their product or profit.  This also leads them into the mistake of talking about features (product) instead of benefits (customer).  The term “target market” is used because that market – that group of people – is the bull’s eye at which you aim all your marketing efforts.  If you need a good introduction to basic marketing theory, read my article Marketing Basics: How to get started.

So, don’t forget that a market is people – people with common characteristics that set them apart as a group. The more statistics you have about a target market, the more precisely you can develop your strategy. The table below shows some examples of market segments (or groups) and their characteristics.

Demographic Segment – This market segment is the one we hear about the most.  The customers in this group are defined by measurable statistics such as age, income, occupation, etc.

Psychographic Segment – This segment is defined by lifestyle preferences like hobbies, city or urban dwellers, boaters, car enthusiasts, wine drinkers, etc.

Use-based Segment - This segment is defined by the items they purchase or consume.  Examples might be readers (book buyers), new parents (baby-items), horse owners (saddles, etc.), etc.  

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Marketing Basics: How to get started

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In order for your business to succeed, you must continuously attract and retain a growing base of satisfied customers.  This is usually accomplished through marketing programs (sometimes referred to as copy writing plans).  Marketing programs are aimed at convincing people to try out or to keep using your products or services.  Entrepreneurs and other freelance professionals should carefully plan their marketing strategies and performance measurements to keep their market presence strong.

Marketing is based on the importance of customers to a business.  Without customers, a business wouldn’t exist.  When planning your marketing plan, you should keep two important principles in mind:

  1. All company policies and activities should be directed toward satisfying customer needs.
  2. Profitable sales volume is more important than maximum sales volume.

To formulate an effective marketing campaign, keep these principles in mind while completing the following four steps:

  1. Determine the needs of their customers through market research
  2. Analyze their competitive advantages to develop a market strategy
  3. Select specific markets to serve by target marketing
  4. Determine how to satisfy customer needs by identifying a market mix

Using Market Research  

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How to do a Competitive Analysis

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Today’s business world is a highly competitive, volatile environment, so it is important to understand the competition.  Understanding the competition will help you find your strengths (which you can focus on in your marketing efforts), and it will also identify areas where you are weaker than your competition.  That will show you how or where you can improve your processes to become even better.

Pick five of your biggest competitors.  For each one of them, list the following information:

  • Is their business growing, steady, or declining?
  • What can you learn from their operations or advertising?
  • What are their strengths and weaknesses?
  • How does their product or service differ from yours?

Start a file for each of your competitors. Include any advertising, promotional materials, and pricing information that you can find. Review and update these files periodically.  Determine how often they advertise, sponsor promotions, and offer sales. Study the copy used in the advertising and promotional materials and their sales strategies.  Ask your friends or customers what they think of Company X.  They may have a completely different few of your competitors; one you never even considered.

What to Address in Your Competitor Analysis  

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Getting into the Newspaper

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Yes, it’s true, the newspaper industry has taken a big hit. But you can still work with the paper and now is a great time to check it out. The newspaper is quick to publish compared to other print products and even though you may not get paid, it sure is nice to have those clips in your portfolio

The print newspaper is still one of the easiest ways to get your name in print and most papers now have websites that will run your writing in tandem (or instead of) the print version. Most papers have expanded their product line with tabs (special print editions in addition to the regular paper) for weddings, city activities (street fairs, county fairs, art festivals), holidays (Christmas, Easter), seasons (Summer Day Trips, Spring Garden Shows), graduations (small town papers sometimes run the pictures of every graduate, including their future plans, in their June “Grad Tab”) and special events (City Center Opens, Arnold Fitness and Sports, etc.). Tabs take more work and much of that work can go to a stringer. YOU as a business owner CAN BE A STRINGER.

Call your local paper to see what kinds of special newspaper editions are being planned for the next year.  

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