How to Define Your Target Audience and Craft Messaging That Will Attract Them
This is an article from The Business Boost & Build Newsletter.
It’s once a week and includes one tip from me and three resources from others.
Your audience is who you serve and how you serve them.
Where a lot of people get confused is thinking that their audience is just a demographic of people.
It encompasses this, but it’s also what they want (the transformation they’re looking for) and it’s much more specific.
With specificity everything falls into place. Your products and services, messaging, style and content.
What if you want to serve people that are not in your target audience? Don’t worry. You can still help these people, we’re just defining your ideal audience.
If you don’t target a specific audience, you probably won’t attract an audience at all.
Specificity is the secret.
Identify Your Interests, Skills, Experience and the Problems You Can Solve
It all starts with one question.
What problem are you going to help people solve?
Think of this as a brainstorming session. Grab a notepad or open your favourite word processor and jot down all your interests, skills and experiences.
Start to think about how these are connected and what problems you can help people with.
- What products or services can you provide with your skills?
- How do they fit into your interests and experiences?
On the surface, it seems like a simple question, until you start to answer it.
You will probably discover that you can help a lot of people with a lot of different problems. The question then becomes, which one do you choose?
I find the best way to approach this is by asking what you don’t want to do.
- What kind of people don’t you want to work with?
- Which options do you feel meh about?
- What doesn’t align with your personal goals?
Defining Your Audience’s Transformation
This is key for your messaging.
Emotions motivate people to take action.
Think about the problems you’re solving:
- Are you helping your target audience save time
- Are you helping your target audience save money
- Are you helping your target audience have a purpose
Write down how their life looks before and after purchasing your product or service. They might experience a range of different emotions.
Emotional Transformation
- Frustrated to calm
- Confused to clear
- Insecure to confident
What you’re really selling is this emotional transformation.
Your product or service is how that transformation is made, and they can buy it with cold hard cash.
Read more about why customers buy from a previous article.
Craft Your Irresistible Messaging
Take a look at the following broad messaging examples.
I’m sure you’ve read a headline or been on a website with similar messaging.
Broad Messaging
- Unlock your potential and achieve your dreams
- Innovative solutions for a brighter future
It’s vague and confusing.
What people are trying to do when writing like this is appeal to everyone, and what they end up doing is appealing to absolutely no one. It just gets ignored.
Take a look at these specific messaging examples, notice the difference.
Specific Messaging
- Software that simplifies HR tasks and boosts productivity
- Fitness programs for busy moms looking to get in shape in 30 minutes a day
This type of specific messaging calls out your target audience, grabs their attention and draws them in.
You will want to test your messaging to see what works. I would recommend asking your customers to describe how they felt before buying your product or service.
You can also explore competitor reviews for the language and words they use. Amazon reviews for related products can be extremely insightful.
Three Resources From Others
- Twitter Growth Engine bundle (free!)
- $500 Giveaway for growing your business ends today!
- The Truth About Consistency…