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Targeted marketing, or advertising to a specific consumer group, has quickly become one of the most profitable methods of reaching out to potential and past purchasers alike. It is certainly one of the preferred methods for a business just starting out with marketing, as well as a surefire way to revamp older, outdated methods of communication.
This article will discuss the benefits and potential setbacks of targeted marketing, and help you in your decision-making process. Whether or not you choose to make the switch to this style of consumer communication, it’s imperative to learn and understand all available opportunities for your business.
Pros:
Cost Efficiency Is Key
Targeted marketing excels where other methods cannot in the realm of cost efficiency. This may be its greatest strength. By choosing to focus on one chosen group that’s shown promise, your marketing department is able to bypass the majority of the population: those unlikely to be swayed by your marketing techniques, and/or consumers with no need or desire for your services. As a result, you eliminate the waste and cost of marketing to consumers unlikely to use your services.
It’s Incredibly Adaptable
Targeted marketing is the perfect choice for those new to marketing for a good reason: adaptability. There are a multitude of ways to define your chosen group, such as age, interests, location and so on. The options are almost endless. It’s this same freedom of choice that governs our ability to choose the perfect group of consumers for your product.
With so many options for specialization, you will be able to focus your marketing efforts on the singular population almost guaranteed to want or need your product or service. For example, marketing dorm room furniture to a population of college students, as opposed to any and all who walk through a furniture store. Success rates are inevitably much higher with a target group in mind.
Cons:
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Targeted Means Time
By its very definition, targeted ads and targeted marketing will require a greater quantity of time to create. Sorting through the information presented by social media platforms, newsreels and other sources of marketing data is a specialized, complex process. Rather than composing a generic email, targeted marketing requires a higher level of personal input and creative content.
You Lose Other Potential Clients
While marketing to those most likely to purchase a product or employ a service makes sense in the short-term, the long-term effects of targeted marketing can potentially affect the growth of your business. Specifically, the lost marketing to potential clients outside of your specialized group.
While marketing to unlikely subjects may be a drain on limited resources for smaller businesses, once a certain degree of profit is established, it may be beneficial to move to a broader marketing strategy. To continue our earlier analogy: perhaps your business has moved on from exclusively dorm room furniture and into standard bedroom pieces. It would then make sense to broaden the horizon.
Implementation Tips:
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Target by Platform
When it comes to marketing, information about potential clients is easy to come by. So easy, in fact, that it may become expedient to focus on one platform for your targeting needs. Be it Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or any other social media platform, you can often find all of the information you’ll require to create a target demographic from your most popular site.
This method doesn’t require too much concentrated effort. Nowadays, it’s easy to find sites and apps that will help you create ads targeted toward specific social media outlets.
Events Can Change the Game
Concerts, movies, festivals and other public events have the power to draw us together and create a community of people from all walks of life. If you’re looking to specify a target group but aren’t sure where to start, a sensible option is to begin with event marketing.
This method is straightforward: choose an event compatible with your market and launch a campaign related to the event, centered around it or otherwise inspired by it in some way. Followers of the event will be directly in your marketing “line of fire†and will benefit from the targeted ads.
Conclusion
Targeted marketing has huge potential, both for the benefit of your business and for consumers in need of your services or product. Like all marketing methods, however, it comes with pros and cons that will change based upon your business, the current market and your own growth potential. A strong marketing plan can make or break a business, so it makes sense to target the demographic that needs your business the most. Don’t underestimate the potential benefits of lifetime customers.
Take stock of your options within the realm of marketing and consider targeted marketing a solid base from which to begin your business’ transformation. Remember, every successful business began small and uncertain, and it’s due to the hard work of both the employees and its CEO that they grew. Establishing a solid, loyal customer base is the key to success, and targeted marketing is a surefire way to grab the attention of the audience you need the most.