Marketing is constantly evolving. Companies can have trouble deciding where to allocate resources when so many channels compete for their attention. Each is important in its own way, so what is a business to do?

That is where you, the digital marketer, come into the picture. You can help your clients target the proper channels and audiences. However, the key to success is knowing and understanding the audience. Here are ways to help you target the customers who need to know about the clients you work for.

What Is a Target Audience?

It is critical to understand exactly what a target audience is. Businesses have to reach the people who need their products or services. Not everyone requires the same products, so companies have to drill down and find out who does.

You can pinpoint a target audience by discovering who needs the product. Some of your audience’s parameters include:

• Location
• Age
• Income range
• Interest
• Life cycle

As an example, a small coffee shop with one location needs to target people in the area — it won’t help much to reach people across the globe unless they can ship the products there. Coffee shops can be popular with teens, college students and adults, so marketing to children would not be helpful.

Discover Your Audience Preferences

The target audience usually has some common traits and preferences. As a digital marketer, you must determine what makes them buy a product. Some things that inspire people to purchase a product include:

• Price range — bargain hunt or high-cost indulgence
• Advertising on social media channels — popular platforms for the customer’s age and demographic
• Dependability — how well the product holds up
• Appearance — how appealing or attractive the product or service is

Once you learn your target audience’s preferences, you can gear advertising toward them. Say the local coffee shop is in a neighborhood with boutiques and high-end restaurants. Shoppers in the area may be spending their entertainment dollars; marketing the coffee as a luxury product may appeal to them.

Look at the Competition

It is critical to know what competing brands are doing. Understanding what works well for them is as important as knowing what doesn’t work.

Study what marketing channels the competition uses. Are they growing their target audience there? Do their customers spend time in the car, for example, and read billboards? Are they online with increased exposure to pop-up ads? Studying competitors’ marketing channels helps discover where the customers focus their attention.

Observe the competition’s advertising style. What are the images they use in their ads? How are messages phrased? Do they offer discounts or coupons? Branding plays a critical role in marketing. What are the brand’s colors and logo style? The local coffee shop may use earth tones to convey sophistication and rich flavor. By contrast, marketing for fundraising technology for schools may use vibrant colors to bring energy and excitement.

Survey the Audience

Are you looking for a straightforward method of learning about your audience? Try using surveys. It asks customers directly what their needs and preferences are.

You can post surveys online via social media and targeted emails. Keep them short and to the point. Ask questions that help you fulfill your goal; don’t waste time on irrelevant ones. Be as specific as possible so that you don’t wonder how to interpret their answers.

Some examples of good survey questions include:

• What led you to purchase the product?
• How was the buying experience?
• What challenges did you face?
• Do you believe you got what you paid for?
• How would you improve the product or service?
• What do you like best about it?

Understanding the target audience helps you, the digital marketer, aim your efforts in the right direction. Your clients don’t have the time or money to waste on the wrong customers, and neither do you. Finding the target audience increases your clients’ satisfaction and helps you serve them better.