5 ways to Identify a Target Market for a Service Based Business
5 ways to Identify a Target Market for a Service Based Business
As a service based business it’s vital that all of your marketing and communications are reaching the right people who align with your brand. To break it down into more personable terms, your target market is your target audience who you want to convert into loyal and delighted customers. Finding your community who share your brand values all starts with a solid strategy. Read on to find out more!
Analyse your Existing Client Base
First thing’s first, look at who already loves what you offer. Who is someone that has become a loyal customer of your business? Close your eyes for a moment and see who springs to mind. Ideally you want to envisage a specific person who represents your ‘ideal client’ - now without crossing over into stalker territory ;) you want to gather as many details relating to them as possible. Why do they connect with your services? What do they value?
Also it’s important to identify what their key ‘pain points’ are, i.e why they seek out and benefit from your service. It’s also vital to give your customer as many opportunities as possible to offer feedback, which is absolute gold dust for you as a business owner. This can be done via social polls on Facebook or Instagram or by distributing ‘quick and easy’ questionnaires created on google forms, typeform or surveymonkey.
Prioritise Market Research
Carve out some time to really study the latest trends in your industry. Using your visionary prowess, see what’s tipped to be the next hottest ticket in your sector by keeping up with the latest insider knowledge. Say for example you have a beauty business, what can you offer your clients that sets you apart from the competition? Can you see an opportunity to serve your clients in a way that others aren’t?
Drill down on the Details
To build upon what we mentioned earlier you want to get super specific about everything relating to your ideal audience. A really helpful exercise to create ‘personas’ for your business - which allow you to determine the different personalities, habits and needs of your customers. For example if you are a wellness business how you serve “Sam the Sleep Deprived New Mum” is going to differ to how you engage with “Yasmine the Serene Yogi”. Personas tend to be created based on data, surveys, online engagements and any other sources you’re able to gather to provide a full overview of your potential customers. We recommend developing between three and five personas to keep things focused.
Knowing who is NOT your target audience
Sometimes knowing what you don’t want makes it gleamingly clear and obvious what you do want. Same goes for identifying your target market. For this part you might want to grab a pen and your notebook and split your page into two. On one side write down as many key descriptions as in relation to your ‘ideal client’ as possible i.e ‘appreciates quality’ ‘values a luxury experience’ and on the other the polar opposite. This helps to flex the imagination and will trigger alarm bells when you take your focus off who you really want to serve.
Study the Metrics
Do you keep tabs on your IG insights and what’s happening on your Facebook Business Suite dashboard? Are you making the most of all the juicy details Google Analytics has to share about who is engaging with your business? If not rest assured you’re 100% not the only one. As a busy business owner stretched in many directions, it's these key details that are often overlooked. Try to make a habit of checking and tracking your metrics as often as possible. It’s a quick and easy way to gauge what your customers are enjoying and also how your marketing strategy is progressing.
We hope that has given you a clearer idea of how to ‘nail your niche’ by identifying your ideal target market. We understand that as a business owner it can be both overwhelming and counter-productive spinning all the plates, all of the time. Remember we’re here to help lighten the load and support you in all aspects of your marketing strategy. As they say, team work makes the dream work!
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