This message will self-destruct in five seconds. No, not really, but in the Mission Impossible movie series, this was the phrase used to explain to the viewers that what they are about to hear is exclusively for the intended listener. The same way that this message is for a particular person, marketers tailor their messaging to a specific group of listeners, known as the target audience. But unlike this movie franchise that prides itself on making challenges impossible, finding the right audience for your product or service is very possible if you take the right steps. Your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to find the most relevant audience to effectively promote your brand.

Today, there are many possibilities on how to convey your message to your consumer and with the list of mediums increasing regularly, finding the right audience is more important than ever. So important that this step should be determined before you write the creative brief, concept the creative, design the ad, or build the website. Communicating to the right audience allows you to be very effective in your advertising. It is also more cost effective because instead of spending money on every possible channel, you can target only the mediums that are relevant to the person you want to reach. Here are some tips to find the person or group who will be the most receptive to your message.

STEP 1: BRAINSTORM

First, create a list of the type of people who you feel would benefit from what you have to offer and determine the demographics, the geographics and the psychographics. Use the following questions as a guide to help you determine your audience. You will want to include as much detail as you possible. Once you’ve brainstormed the following, the next step is to do research and update what you think is correct with the actual data.

Demographics:

1. What is their gender? How old are they?

2. Are they married? Do they have kids? What is their family size?

3. What is their education level? What is their occupation? Their income?

Geographics:

1. Where do they live? What is the size or population of the area?

2. Are there any other factors about location that will help or hinder them from getting your product or service?

Psychographics:

1. What do they value? What are their goals? What are their interests?

2. Where do they go for information? What are their buying patterns?

3. What are their pain points? Or how can you solve their problems?

STEP 2: RESEARCH

The next step is to do your research. There are many primary and secondary research options and it is best to gather both types and compare all data to find the most relevant audience. Primary research includes information that you collect on your own, such as through a survey that you create. There are many services available online, such as Survey Monkey, that allows you to create a custom questionnaire that can be sent via email to gather feedback from people who are most likely to use your product or service. This survey can be sent to your existing client contact list, or if that is not available, you can purchase a list. Secondary research includes market research data that you obtain or buy from a third party, such as the US Census, Mediamark Research and Intelligence (GfK MRI Data) or Pew Research. And if you have a website, Google Analytics can also provide you with some very beneficial information on who is visiting your site and how they are learning about it, such as through various social media channels or search engines.

STEP 3: BUILD A PERSONA

Once you’ve acquired the information and data from the bullets above, it is time to paint a picture of your target by giving them a story and background. This fictional representation of your ideal customer is known as a persona. Start by giving them a name and include everything you have learned about them from the above steps. Developing a snapshot for your customer type will help you speak their language and truly see them as people vs. an anonymous audience. Once this is completed, you will use this persona as a guide in which to base all future marketing, including your positioning, concepting and final creative.

For instance, if you are targeting a 62 year-old male who is looking for a company to install some new insulation, he may look like the following example.

After reviewing these steps, I am sure that you recognize the importance of finding the right target audience. If you spend money advertising online, when your target only reads the newspaper, that money will be wasted. In the age of technology, it is hard to believe that people still read a traditional newspaper, but people do. So, before you try to attract your audience with what you have to offer, you need to understand everything you can about your target, including how they consume their media.

Not all tasks or missions have to be impossible. In fact, if you follow the above steps, your efforts will be easy, which will make your messaging more effective and increase your sales. So take the necessary time to determine your correct target audience, because if you fail to accept this mission, your brand may self-destruct.

What do you think? What steps do you take to find your target audience?

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Want to learn more about finding the right target audience? Check out the following resources, where I obtained some of the above information: What Is Target Marketing?, What Is MRI In Advertising?, A Template For Writing Great Personas, 9 Questions You Need To Ask When Developing Buyer Personas andTarget Marketing 101 (Infographic).