How to Identify Your Target Audience through Research

A target market, also known as a target audience, is a specific group of consumers identified as the most likely audience for a product, service, marketing message, or advertising campaign.

What is a Target Market?

People are very different from each other. Each of us lives differently, believes in different things, and has our own desires and needs. And all of this reflects when it comes to buying. Each person is interested in different products. For example, a 50-year-old woman will likely like a completely different type of clothing than a 20-year-old. In other words, what is amazing for one person may not even catch the attention of another.

Therefore, in target market studies, we talk about dividing your audience into smaller groups, which we call segments, where everyone has something in common. This “something” should be important for your business, making sense when offering your product or service. For example, if you sell bicycles, you can have a segment of people who like mountain biking, another who prefers city bicycles, and so on.

Understanding this distinction will help you develop products, marketing messages, distribution strategies, and pricing structures that cater to your target market and each segment.

Companies typically segment the market to identify and define their target market based on a variety of characteristics, which can include:

Demographics: This can include age, gender, income, education, marital status, family size, profession, among others.
Geographics: Includes characteristics like location, climate, population density, region, etc.
Psychographics: Attributes related to lifestyle, personality, attitudes, interests, opinions, and consumer behaviors.
Behavioral: Here, consumers are segmented based on buying patterns, brand loyalty, usage frequency, sought benefits, etc.

Why is Defining a Target Market so Important?

Correctly identifying the target market allows companies to target their marketing efforts more efficiently, as it helps understand the needs, desires, behaviors, and consumption patterns of the target group better. This, in turn, can lead to more effective marketing strategies and the development of products or services that better meet the needs of the target market.

Defining a target market is crucial for several reasons:

Focus

Knowing the target market allows a company to direct its products, services, and marketing strategies to a specific group of consumers. This is more effective than trying to sell to everyone and can result in a higher conversion rate.

Customer Understanding

By defining a target market, a company can gain a deeper understanding of the needs, desires, behaviors, and consumption patterns of that specific group of customers. This can enable the company to develop products or services that better meet these needs and desires.

Resource Efficiency

Marketing to a specific target market is generally more economical than trying to reach a broader audience. This is because resources can be directed to communication channels and marketing messages that are more likely to reach and influence the target consumer group.

Competitive Advantage

Knowing the target market well can provide a competitive advantage, as it allows the company to anticipate the needs and desires of its customers, quickly adapt to changes in market preferences, and develop unique product or service offerings that stand out from the competition.

Therefore, defining a target market is a critical component of success in the business world. It provides a solid foundation for decision-making and can be the key to long-term growth and profitability.

How to Define a Target Market

Defining a target market is a process that involves several steps. Here are some key steps:

Market Analysis: First, you must understand the overall market. This includes understanding the competition, the overall demand for the products or services you offer, and the trends shaping the industry.
Market Segmentation: Next, divide the market into segments based on criteria such as demographics, behavior, geography, and psychographics. For example, you can segment the market based on age, where people live, their interests, or how they use your product.
Identifying the Target Market: After segmenting the market, identify the segment (or segments) that are most attractive for your product or service. This is often a segment that has an unmet need that your product can fill, is large enough to be profitable, and that you have the resources to reach.
Target Market Profile: Create a detailed profile of your target market. This should include information such as the demographics of the group, their interests and needs, their purchasing habits, and what motivates them to buy.
Product/Service Positioning: Finally, you should define how you want to position your product or service to your target market. This includes deciding on the marketing messages you will use to attract and persuade this group, as well as which marketing channels you will use to reach them.

Remember, the target market you define at the beginning of a business or new product may not remain the same. Over time, you may discover new target markets or realize you need to shift your focus as you learn more about what your customers want and need.

How to Find Your Target Audience through Research?

Finding your target market through research is a strategic process that involves collecting and analyzing information about potential consumers and their needs. Here are some steps to do this:

Identify your current customer base and send preliminary surveys: If you already have an ongoing business, starting by analyzing your current customer base can be helpful. See who your current customers are and which ones bring the most business to you. This can help identify a target segment. This involves collecting data directly from potential consumers. This could be done through interviews, questionnaires, focus groups, and observation. For example, you can send a survey to your email subscribers asking about their interests, buying behaviors, and needs.
Conduct secondary research and analyze general data: Secondary research involves analyzing data that has already been collected by other sources, such as market research agencies, government agencies, industry reports, and media publications. This can provide insights into market trends, demographic data, and consumer behavior patterns. After the responses arrive, analyze the data to determine your target population and some of its characteristics. Start filtering respondents whose answers indicate that they are not suitable for your company.
Analyze the competition: See who are the customers of your competitors. This can help identify market segments that you may have overlooked and can provide insights into how to position your product or service.
Determine your target market and market segmentation: After collecting and analyzing the data, divide the market into segments based on common characteristics. This can be done based on factors such as age, location, behavior, interests, among others.
Create your survey: Use the information you have already collected to create a detailed questionnaire about your target audience. Be curious about each specific group. As you have already done good initial research, you can now go into more detail. The more you know about the groups you want to reach, the more accurate your marketing actions will be. Use powerful survey creation tools to add logic to each question.
Choose your target market and select the sample: Finally, based on your findings, choose the market segment (or segments) that seem most attractive for your product or service. Consider the size of the segment, your ability to meet the needs of that segment, and whether it is practical and financially viable to reach it. Once your survey is ready, you will need to choose who will receive it. Obtaining a representative sample is crucial for generating usable results.
Analyze the results: There you go, you’ve done a quality survey and now you know who’s going to receive it. So get ready to see the answers. When they arrive, take a good look at the data to find out which groups really have more to do with your business. Use the rating questions for each group to see the size of each of them. Keep an eye on patterns within each group. What do they have in common? And where are they different? How can this information help you in marketing? Using this information, you will be able to turn survey responses into a great business plan.

Remember, finding your target market is an ongoing process. You should regularly revisit your research and data as your business grows and the market changes.

Examples of Questions to Ask to Confirm the Target Market

The questions to confirm your target market may vary depending on the type of business or service you are providing. However, here are some examples of questions that can help identify and confirm your target market:

Demographic Data:

What is your age?
What is your gender?
Where do you live?

Consumption Behavior:

How much do you spend on products/services similar to ours per month?
How often do you buy these products/services?

Interests and Needs:

What makes you choose a product/service like ours?
What problems do you expect our product/service to solve?

Previous Experiences:

Have you bought similar products/services before?
If yes, what did you like and dislike about them?

Competitors:

Are you familiar with our main competitors?
If yes, what makes you prefer our product/service over theirs?

Opinions about the Product/Service:

What do you think of the quality of our product/service?
Is there anything you would like to see improved or changed?

These questions are just a starting point. The key to confirming your target market is to ask questions that provide valuable insights into who your potential customers are, what their needs are, and how they make purchasing decisions.

To make your business evolve, you need to know who your target audience is. And a good way to understand this is by asking them directly through surveys. This way, you will get to know who your customers are and what they want more closely.