“They don’t have a clue, it’s bonkers.”
Henry shook his head as he drank his London Pride. Entrepreneurs and marketers for the last week had been hiring him to research blogs to help them promote their company.
“Almost every time, they ask me to find blogs that talk about their competitors or technology – not their target market”.
Henry helps people find blogs from which to write guest posts (I recommended his service in my newsletter). A large problem he encounters however is people not understanding the difference between their product and their target market.
Picture a man trying to sell air conditioning units. He works very hard to have his air conditioning units placed in all the air conditioning magazines. After six months of calling journalists and writing press releases, he finally gets some press coverage. There on page 32, his air conditioning unit is wedged between three other models from other competitors.
Looking at the coverage, he smiles and rubs his hands in glee. All that six months of hard work has finally paid off, he thinks. He waits for the phone to ring.
But the phone never rings.
As Ferriss writes, ‘the hardest place to sell a book is in a bookstore’. Those who buy air conditioning magazines are not the man’s target audience. No, they’re not. His target audience are people who are bothered by heat. Therefore, his target market are people who are in hot environments but uncomfortable with it. For example, European expatriates who now live in Asia.
These European expatriates used to live in cold countries. They now live in hot countries. They’re not used to it and are probably bothered by the heat. Therefore they could be a target market for air conditioning units. Focusing on blogs which european expatriates read (example) would be more fruitful.
Recognising your target market first and then asking which media do they consume (read, listen, watch) is important. Who are they, then what do they consume.
Thankfully to the entrepreneurs who have purchased Henry’s services, he’s a nice chap and points the mistake out. Most accept his advice, he said, some don’t.
Actions for you:
- Answer this on paper now: Who is your target market? Where do they live, how old are they, what is the problem they are experiencing?
- Write this underneath your first answer: What media do they consume? TV channels, radio, online news, blogs… Make a list.
- Put a tick next to each media outlet you have approached already. Find the contact details of those you haven’t.
