Let's talk about something that's super important for your
business: identifying your ideal target markets for paid campaigns. I know, I
know, it might sound a bit boring, but trust me, it's crucial if you want to
get the most bang for your buck when it comes to advertising.
I hope you enjoy reading this blog post. If you want my team
to just do your marketing for you, click here.
What's a Target Market, Anyway?
First things first, let's define what we mean by a
"target market." Essentially, it's the group of people who are most
likely to buy your product or service. Some of them might already be customers,
while others may not even know you exist yet.
Now, you might be thinking, "Isn't that the same as a
demographic?" Well, not exactly. Demographics are actually subsets of a
target market. For example, let's say you're a car insurance company. Your
target market could be "all car owners," but your latest marketing
campaign might focus on a specific demographic within that market, like young
drivers.
Why You Need to Identify Your Target Market
Picture this: you're running an ad campaign for your car
insurance company, but you're using messaging and imagery aimed at young
drivers in a social media campaign targeted at older audiences. Or, you're
bidding on keywords like "car insurance for young drivers," but your
actual target market is older motorists. Not the best strategy, right?
These might seem like obvious mistakes, but even small
targeting missteps can cost you big time. The average cost per click (CPC) of a
Google search ad is $2.69, but in some industries, it can be way higher. If
you're in the legal sector, just 100 clicks could set you back $675. That's a
lot of money to waste on the wrong audience!
And it's not just about the money. Google and Facebook use
"quality scores" or "relevance scores" to determine where
your ad ranks and how much you pay. If your ad is more relevant to your target
audience than your competitor's, you could outrank them even if you're bidding
the same amount. Pretty sweet, huh?
Target Audience for Organic vs. Paid Ads
Now, you might be wondering if there's a difference between
an "organic audience" and a "paid audience." The truth is,
we're all the same people; our online behavior just changes depending on where
we are in the buyer's journey.
Let's use search as an example. Generally, people are less
likely to click on paid listings than organic ones. But, paid listings actually
beat organic listings 2:1 for keywords with high commercial intent. That means
people clicking on paid ads are often more ready to buy.
How to Find Your Ideal Target Market
If you offer a niche product or service, like car insurance
for young drivers, your target market is pretty straightforward. But if you
have a diverse customer base or a mass-market product, things get a bit
trickier. Don't worry, though; you can still narrow down your target market for
PPC and paid social campaigns.
1. Look for Common Threads in Your Current Customers
Unless you're a brand new business, you already have a
customer base that can provide valuable insights into your ideal target market.
Even if your customers seem really different on the surface, they likely share
some key characteristics, behaviors, or interests.
Consider things like:
- Age:
Are they Baby Boomers, Gen X, Millennials, or Gen Z?
- Stage
of life: Are they students, new parents, empty nesters, or retirees?
- Location:
Where do they live? Are they all in the same region or time zone?
- Buying
power: How affluent are they? Would they consider your product a major
purchase?
- Interests:
What do they like to do in their free time? Do they have favorite sports
teams, music artists, or TV shows?
- Pain
points: What problems are they trying to solve with a product like
yours?
None of these factors will give you the full picture on
their own, but together, they can help you target more effectively.
2. Figure Out Why People Buy From You
Okay, so you know who your customers are. Now you need to
understand why they choose to buy from you.
People make purchases for all sorts of reasons, like:
- To
meet a basic need, like food or shelter
- For
convenience, like grabbing a coffee at the nearest shop when they're
thirsty
- To
replace or upgrade something, like trading in an old suit or buying a
smart TV
- For
aspirational reasons, like buying a fancy watch to impress others
- Because
of peer pressure, like when their friends convince them to buy something
- To
treat themselves, even if they don't really need the item
- To
stay on trend, like waiting in line for the latest iPhone
- Because
it's a great deal, like when a long-awaited product goes on sale
Sometimes, a purchase falls into multiple categories. A new
car could be aspirational, a replacement for an older model, and more
fuel-efficient all at the same time.
To figure out the main reasons people buy your product, try
running a customer survey that asks things like:
- What
made you look for this product in the first place?
- Why
did you choose us over a competitor?
- What
other factors influenced your decision?
- Was
there anything that almost stopped you from buying?
3. Base Your Decisions on Data, Not Assumptions
Do you know the number one reason startups fail? It's not
running out of money or pricing their product too high. It's having no market
need for what they're selling.
This happens when business owners are so caught up in their
own vision that they don't stop to see if anyone actually wants what they're
offering. They make assumptions instead of looking at the data.
Don't make the same mistake. Never assume you know your
target market and what drives them to buy without actually asking them. Use
their responses to guide your marketing strategy, not just your gut instinct.
How to Use Your Target Market in Your Paid Ads
Now that you understand your target market, you can use that
knowledge to inform your paid ad strategy.
1. Segment Your Target Market
Your research probably uncovered multiple subgroups within
your overall target market. You could try to reach all of them with one generic
campaign, but you'll likely see better results if you segment your audience and
target each group with different ads.
McDonald's is a great example of this. They're trying to
reach pretty much everyone, but they don't always use the same ads for all
audiences. Check out these two McDonald's ads, both aimed at a young audience
and related to social issues:
Almost half the audience for this ad was 18-24 year-olds.
It's cool, inclusive, and links to YouTube, which has a huge reach with younger
audiences.
2. Use Demographic Targeting
Platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn offer a ton of
demographic targeting options for social ads, starting with basics like:
- Location
- Age
- Gender
But you can get way more specific. With Facebook Audience
Insights, you can mix and match options to understand your target market's size
and makeup.
For example, let's say you want to target people in the US
interested in digital marketing. You can see a top-level breakdown of that
audience. But if you narrow it down to men aged 25-34 in California with those
interests, you might find they're:
- Almost
all college-educated
- Mostly
working in sales or production
- Interested
in Gary Vaynerchuk and Tim Ferriss
- Nearly
twice as likely to click ads as the average Facebook user
The more you know about your audience, the more you can
learn. It's a virtuous cycle!
3. Exclude Certain Audiences from Paid Search Campaigns
Imagine this: you've done your research, segmented your
target market, and created separate paid search campaigns with custom landing
pages for each audience.
But there's a problem. People are clicking ads meant for
other audiences and ending up on irrelevant landing pages. Instead of buying,
they're bouncing right to your competitors.
Don't panic! You can fix this with audience exclusions. They
let you:
- Stop
targeting existing customers
- Exclude
people better suited for a different campaign
- Remove
website visitors who have already taken the action you wanted
To set up audience exclusions in Google Ads:
- Sign
in to your Google Ads account
- Click
"Audiences"
- Click
"Exclusions"
- Click
the blue "+" icon
- Choose
"Campaign" or "Ad group" from the dropdown menu
- Click
the pencil icon and select the campaign or ad group
- Use
"Search" and "Browse" to find the audiences to exclude
- Click
"Save"
FAQs
1. How often should I reassess my target market?
It's a good idea to revisit your target market regularly,
especially if you're launching new products or services, expanding into new
areas, or noticing shifts in your customer base. At a minimum, aim to review
your target market annually.
2. What if I have multiple target markets?
That's totally normal! Many businesses have several distinct
target markets. The key is to develop separate marketing strategies and
campaigns for each one, rather than trying to reach them all with a
one-size-fits-all approach.
3. Can I target different markets on different platforms?
Absolutely! Different social media platforms and advertising
channels tend to have different user demographics. For example, Instagram tends
to skew younger than Facebook, while LinkedIn is geared toward professionals.
Tailor your platform strategy to where your target markets spend their time
online.
4. How do I know if I've chosen the right target market?
The proof is in the pudding, as they say. If your campaigns
are performing well and you're seeing strong ROI, that's a good sign you're
targeting the right people. If not, it's time to revisit your target market
definition and make some adjustments.
The Bottom Line
Identifying your ideal target market takes some time and
effort, and it might be tempting to skip this step in the rush to launch your
paid campaigns.
But trust me, it's worth it. When you really understand your
target market, you'll reach more of the right people, convert more leads,
generate more sales, and waste less money on ineffective campaigns.