Entrepreneurs Ask... I’m already successful. Do I still need to define my target market?

To write impactful marketing materials with guaranteed results, first your target market must be clearly defined.

You’ll notice I didn’t say, “To be successful in business, first your target market must be clearly defined.”

That’s because many entrepreneurs experience accidental success. They introduce a product at a most opportune time, they grow a business based on intuition, or they are just at the right place at the right time. It happens all the time, but at some point you realize the value and importance of speaking directly to your target market. You want to refine your existing system to realize even greater results. You want a strategic and specific plan for drawing in even more clients. Do this simple yet revealing exercise to open your eyes to the possibilities.

Once this happens, your vision is now crystal clear. Your perfect clients find you and instantly resonate with you. It’s because you speak “their” language. They feel you know them. And, in a way you do. You’ve zeroed in on their pain, their struggles, their life worries and you paint yourself, your products, your services as the answer to their problems.

Let me give you an example. For which market is this headline intended?

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a. A 55-year-old corporate male executive with a corner office
who lives and works in Manhattan

b. A 15-year-old female fashionista who attends a public --
but very upscale -- school

c. A 37-year-old conservative, religious female who lives in a
town with the same population as her age

Yep. You guessed it; B is the correct answer.

If you’re like many entrepreneurs who – until this moment – thought a target market analysis was unnecessary, now you understand why this exercise is so crucial.

Do you think the 55-year-old executive or the 37-year-old small town lady will read past the headline? NO! And neither will your customers/clients if you are not clear on who your message is trying to reach. When you have a mental image (you’ll create this during the exercise below) of your perfect client, your marketing materials reflect that clarity.

Your message must speak the language of your intended audience. If it doesn’t, you unnecessarily expend too much time, money and energy trying to sell to everyone. That’s another way to say you waste a great deal of all three.

Your target market isn’t everyone. No product or service is meant for every person on the planet. Stop trying to be everything to everyone and start being the #1 resource for the people with whom you want to do business. Cater to them. Cater well to them. Speak their language. See what happens.

At first you may think this is a waste of time. But I promise: Doing this exercise reveals aspects of your ideal customer that don’t surface any other way. It helps if you have an existing client file, but if not, don’t fret. Chances are your ideal client is you! If that’s true, use that as a starting point.

From this point forward, write every marketing piece directly to one person who represents your target market. With a prominent mental image of this person, your writing becomes more personal and hits the mark every time.

Mark your target, and hit it with precise and pre-determined language that engages, inspires and prompts your reader to take action. Now THAT’S the power of copywriting that sells.