Serving your Target Market
I may have mentioned before that it is common with SME’s to avoid defining a target market due to a misguided belief that it will reduce the number of potential customers rather than simply making it easier to find them.
You will not be surprised then, when I tell you that it is rarer still for most to spend time and effort working out what it is they actually do for those potentially ideal customers, what makes them different to the competition and why should someone buy from them and be loyal to them, because if you can work out what it is you do for them, that they need, that the competition can’t do for them or won’t do for them then they will talk to you.
This is what makes effective marketing possible, first knowing who you want to speak to (your target markets, a previous post on this) then what is it you do to serve that market, (what you can do for them that they need that others can’t do) and then communicating that to them in a way that resonates with them.
You can’t effectively communicate how you can help, if you don’t know what it is that your customers value about your service, not what you assume they value, or even what they say they value, but what their actions tell you they value as if you assume there is a massive chance you will get it wrong in some critical way.
That brings us to how do we uncover this need, well its probably a good idea to start with problems Vs symptoms, in most things people tend to treat the symptoms rather than curing the problem, taking a headache tablet is treating the symptoms, the problem is maybe well be something like dehydration caused by a lack of fluids so the solution would be to get some water. It is not that symptoms are a bad place to start on the contrary the symptoms can help you diagnose the problem you are trying to solve and talking to potential customers abut the actual things they are experiencing is a good way to get their attention.
The point is that what you are offering them needs to be a solution to the underlying problem that is causing the symptoms they experience, it has to be something they are not being offered by the vast majority of your competition, something that reduces the pain they are feeling, they have lots of people selling them snake oil and promising to cure all their aliments but you need to offer them something they actually value and believe you can deliver.
There are lots of Business Consultants, Coaches, advisors, Non-Executive Directors and Management consultants out there and they are all offering to help you build, grow, improve your team, the difference I bring is the unique system I have developed over the last 25 years that no one else has.
This means I focus on your specific circumstances, create a framework for you to unearth and deal with the underlying issues that are creating bottlenecks, reducing profit and preventing higher growth.
This increases efficiency, reduces the time impact on you and increases your profits, which in turn increases the value of your business and creates exit options for you.
You need to create your own offering that your target market need, want and will take action to get and that they can’t get or at least are not aware they can get elsewhere.
Want to know more then get in touch.
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