08.01.06
Identifying Your Target Market
Before you can create a marketing plan, you have to be able to identify who you are going to sell your services and/or products. Unfortunately, a broad-based statement such as “everyone” or “technology firms” or “other small business owners” isn’t going to cut it here. You need to be precise. The more you know, the better prepared and successful you will be at marketing your products or services.
First, you need to determine who your ideal client is. Can you describe the characteristics of your ideal customer? If individuals, what are their age, gender, socio-economic status, occupation, hobbies, etc? For businesses, are they located in a specific area or sector, do they share similarities in terms of the customer groups they sell to, how do they conduct business (face-to-face, phone, website, etc.)?
Now that you have a clear picture as to who your client is, you need to determine exactly what they want and need. When you know that, you can decide exactly what services and products you can provide to them. This in-depth understanding also enables you to craft your marketing message and plan so that they will effectively sell and support your products and services to your customers.
