A classic digital marketing tip is to know your audience. But who is your audience? Some businesses have no idea. Others think they know, but are sadly mistaken and losing out on valuable revenue. Knowing your market is a big part of effective content marketing, and the sooner you find out, the more effective your strategies will be.
One of the biggest mistakes marketers can make is confusing an intended audience with an actual audience. Even if your products were designed for young adults, that doesn’t mean that’s who’s buying them. In order to truly investigate who your audience is, there are four key data points, metrics, and customer segments you can look at.
1. Location
Is your audience local, or are your sales national? By using location data from web visitors, you can see exactly where your sales are coming from, and who to target moving forward. Location can also uncover other valuable information about your market, giving you insight into culture and common area resources.
2. Age and Gender
The age of your average customer can make a big difference in your marketing strategies. Looking at Google and social media analytics can help you see the average age and gender of your page viewers and customers, helping you target your marketing efforts in the right place, like the right social media platform and the most useful content topics.
3. General Interests
Are your posts striking the right chords with your readers? Website data can help you monitor your best and worst posts, allowing you to see what articles are clicked on and read to completion versus those that went unnoticed. Understanding what your visitors want to read can guide your content strategies in a positive direction.
4. Traffic Sources
Where your traffic is coming from can provide a great look into who’s interested in your products. If most of your traffic comes from social media, you can assume your Facebook posts are making a difference, but if Google searches bring most of your visitors, it’s a sign that your website is strong but your digital marketing strategies aren’t living up to your aspirations.
Whether your audience is exactly who you intended or you’re not sure who’s buying your products, taking an indepth look at who you should be targeting is the kind of market research every savvy company should be performing. The more you know about your audience, the more effective your marketing can be.
