12 Proven Ways to Reach Your Target Market

The methods named in this article are nothing short of stunning though the simple fact that they work. Targeting is very important if you do not want to waste hours of your time and armfuls of money whilst marketing.

Here are 12 methods that you may not have thought of, and a few ways you can gain access to a better group of targeted individuals.

1) Your own customers

This is the best piece of advice because it is stunning in its simplicity. Your current and ex customers are your most targeted audience. Not only have they spent money on your products, but they already know whom you are and already have a certain level of trust for you.

The companies that run after new customers to the exclusion of their current and ex customers are missing out on appealing to their most targeted group–their own customers. You most probably already have their email address or contact details. Why not ask them how much they liked your product?

You could find out if they would like to upgrade their current model or buy any accessories. It is also safe to assume that they will want similar products. For example, a gardener may buy a spade from you, but will probably be open to purchasing other gardening tools from you too.

2) Define your target audience before you start chasing it

Many companies have very poor results from their advertising campaigns and continue to tweak and adjust their marketing strategy, when they are actually targeting the wrong group. It is better to be chasing a targeted group rather than defining no target customers at all. Whilst analyzing your marketing efforts you should always consider the fact that you may simply be targeting the wrong group.

3) Trial and error affiliate marketing

This method may hardly be described as stunning until you see what sort of results you are able to get with very little investment. Affiliate marketing is the perfect place to test market and trial-and-error market because you can control the campaign in very fine detail, and all of the results are quantitative so they are very easy to analyze. You may also do this on a very small budget (tens of dollars).

4) Videos on social media

You must remember that not all of your target audience are affiliate banner advert clickers, and not all of them are big reading fans. You should post targeted videos on places such as YouTube and DailyMotion so that people can see your message free, on a network that makes finding and playing your video very easy.

5) Images on social media

The way you may wish to embed your marketing message is completely up to you, but the same principals apply with images as with videos. Some people will simply respond better to images than they will with video or text, and some of those people are your target audience.

6) Referrals from your current customers

This is a very powerful, long-term and cheap method of attracting a much targeted crowd. Your customers will not only recommend you, but will also pick other people who they think are likely to respond well to your brand. The biggest problem comes from motivating your current customers to refer people to you. Offering your current customers some sort of incentive is a plausible way of getting referrals.

7) Purchase genuine mail lists of people who have bought certain items

This is a very dangerous method of targeting customers because most mailing lists are phony. You may also be contacting a lot of people who are already getting thoroughly cold called. You may also be contacting people who have had their details harvested instead of giving them freely.

You may also be contacting people who asked not to be contacted. You may be contacting people who have had a bad experience with the previous company who provided you the mailing list. You must also remember that if a mailing list were so good then who in their right mind would sell it.

However, if you find a mailing list of people who have purchased products similar to yours in the past then it can mature into a stunning way of reaching your target audience.

8) Purchase the data from rewards cards databases

Cards that give points are not there to act as a purchasing incentive. They are there to collect marketing information, which is freely sold for a lot of money. If you can get your hands on portions of this information then you can mould your marketing campaign into one that appeals to the right people.

9) Engage the online community in areas that interest your target audience

This is the same as visiting a singles bar if you want to meet single people. If you sell gardening tools then visit website forums that discuss gardening.

10 ) Offer them a free service if they purchase from you

If you offer the service after they purchase then you, gain repeat visits, which will give you, repeated access to a much targeted group of people. Even if they do not wish to re-order a similar product, you may still sell them further accessories or other similar products.

11 ) Copy your competition

It is naughty right? But what do you think they are doing? Your competition will copy every single successful marketing and targeting campaign that you do, so you need to do the same in return.

12 ) Turn your product into a service

This is a good way of reaching your target audience by the back door (without being directly promotional). Simply change the wording of some of your marketing material so that it looks like you are giving a service as oppose to a product. For example a toaster is a cooking device, and lawn mower is a gardening device. The change in tongue will attract chefs and gardeners respectively.

Which of these have worked for you ?