When you sit down to write your marketing materials—whether it’s Web content, a sales letter, an ad or anything else—what are you thinking about? How about when you’re getting ready to talk to a prospect?
If you’re like most small business owners, you’re thinking about what you want people to know about you, your products or services, and your business. And you’re also probably thinking about your own wants, needs and goals (IE: getting the client or making the sale).
This is perfectly natural and all well and good. But if you really want to make more sales with less struggle, you’ve got to shift your mindset and put yourself in your ideal client’s or customer’s shoes. Then talk about what’s important to them.
Make It All About Them
Because here’s the thing…your prospects don’t care about you, your goals, your background, your training, your company history, or your processes—at least not right off the bat.
What your prospects care most about is what you can do for them!
First they want to know if you have what they need. Then they want to know how your products and services will benefit them. Without that info most prospects aren’t going to buy.
Why would they? Very few people spend money for no good reason—especially these days.
So give ‘em a good reason!
Explain exactly how what you offer solves their problems, fills their needs, fulfills their wants or helps them achieve their goals. Then, they’re going to be very, very interested. Provide proof of results and they might even buy on the spot.
Define Your Audience of One
The tricky part is that different people have different wants, needs, problems and goals.
Consider a 22-year old single mother working two jobs, making 35k a year versus a successful, married professional woman in her forties with two kids in college. Both are moms. But even if they bought the same things it would likely be for different reasons, because their wants, needs, problems and goals are different.
So if you try speaking to all moms at one time you probably won’t connect with any of them.
Instead, narrow your target market down to a tight niche (IE: from women to moms to first-time mothers of newborn girls). Now go further and describe your ideal client as a single person with a name, background, maybe even a photo. Then literally write/speak to just that one person in your marketing and advertising.
Maybe you’re thinking, “Stacy you’re crazy! If I narrow my target market like this I’m going to lose all kinds of potential clients and sales.” Not true!!
The most effective marketing and advertising is like a one-on-one conversation between the writer and the reader.
When your ideal client sees or hears your marketing or advertising messages, they should feel like you’re speaking directly to them….That you understand their specific problems, wants, needs and goals…and that you can help. This won’t happen if you’re talking to everyone with a wallet.
Plus, once you know exactly who you are selling to, it’s much easier to find and get in front of them. And way cheaper and more effective than trying to reach everyone who MIGHT buy.
Niche Market Definition Process
So how do you narrow down your target market and find the ideal client or customer to speak to?
Start by asking yourself these three, deceptively simple questions…
- What problem(s) does my product or service solve?
The best products and services always solve a problem. The more painful the problem the easier it is to sell your solution. - Who is kept up at night by this problem?
Anyone who doesn’t have this problem is clearly not in your target market. - Of those, who would be the MOST willing, able and likely to buy?
Pick your top three. From these choose your number one. Now focus all your marketing efforts, offers and messages on them.
Keep in mind you can have more than one ideal client and/or target market. You just have to speak to each of them differently. Which is time consuming and expensive. So start with the most likely prospects first, then expand to other target markets as your business (and budget) grows.
