Tag: target audience

Make Your Marketing Like a Capsule Wardrobe (Hear Us Out)

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Do you find picking out clothes to wear an exhausting process? If so, you’re not alone. Other people find the process of shopping and picking out clothes for the day as exhausting as you do. Barack Obama, Ariana Grande, Michael Kors, Ellen DeGeneres, Richard Branson, Hillary Clinton, Steve Jobs…just to name a few.

What you wear says a lot about you, so you want to make the right decision, but this is also why it can be so time-consuming and tiring. This is why many wealthy and successful people use what’s called a capsule wardrobe.

A capsule wardrobe is a foundational array of key clothing pieces that you wear nearly every day. It mitigates decision fatigue, you’ll know that it fits you, and you can get on with your day.

Fun fact: This is exactly what happens with small business owners and their marketing. They want to put their best foot forward, but the process of dressing their business up is exhausting and expensive.

The good news is that it doesn’t have to be. You can create your marketing message as you would a capsule wardrobe.

Create a Foundational Message for Your Business

But wait, you’re asking—wouldn’t creating and delivering a message with a few key pieces just be repeating the same marketing techniques over and over?

Repeating a message is the cornerstone of marketing. This seems obvious enough and yet, many business professionals wonder if they need to be saying the same thing all the time.

So to be clear: yes, you need to repeat your message, but how do you keep people from tuning it out? Won’t people get bored or even resentful hearing the same thing over and over again?

Not necessarily. Here’s how you can dress up that foundational marketing message to help people remember who you are and what you do without being that annoying company that says the same thing every time you hear from them.

3 Ways to Dress Up Your Core Message

Much like creating a capsule wardrobe, coming up with your singular foundational message can be broken down like this:

Speak in a way that resonates with your PERFECT client. Are they cavalier or more buttoned-up? Are they creative or analytical? Are they more conservative or cheeky? Pro Tip: Talk to them in their language, not yours.
Explain your value clearly. In other words, what are you going to do for them? What problem do you solve for them? Be plain. Be clear. Leave no room for interpretation. Pro Tip: Adding a clever or sexy message is much easier with clear language.
Highlight what you do differently. You have the same core message, but you can play it up by highlighting what makes your business unique. Pro Tip: Highlighting what you do differently is a great way to distinguish yourself from the competition.

While this may feel like an oversimplification to some, that’s exactly the point. If you take the time and energy to hammer out your core message, getting creative with your marketing becomes infinitely easier.

Think of the Geico commercials. They repeat their core message over and over. They’ll save you 15% or more on car insurance. Insurance is boring; they make it funny. They come up with off-the-wall ways to demonstrate their message, but at its core, it’s exactly the same.

Not Sure What to Do Next?

Schedule a complimentary strategy session with our marketing professionals at GoBeyond SEO. We can help you define your target audience, create your foundational message, and help you drive that message home to your customers.

Tags content marketing, marketing, marketing strategy, target audience

Small Business Marketing

Setting Boundaries for Ultimate Business Success

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Did you know that business ownership is one of the most stressful choices you can make in your career?

Did you also know that you can manage your stress even as a business owner? That feeling of being enslaved to the company you’ve created is not a requirement for success.

Here’s a way to manage your stress while building a foundation for success: setting boundaries with appropriate positioning and targeted marketing and you’ll get to work with your ideal clients with less burnout.

The Benefits of Setting Business Boundaries

We know what you’re thinking: why should you limit your client opportunities by setting boundaries before you’ve even had the chance to talk to them?

This is a fair question. However, you’re not setting rigid boundaries in that you won’t speak to many prospects. Setting business boundaries helps you laser focus on the perfect client for your business. Doing so will benefit you in the following ways:

Decrease your competition. The more clear you are with your boundaries in regards to who is a good fit for you and who is not, you’ll decrease your competition. To that end, you’ll have time and energy to focus on the clients that will help you build your business.
Gain better traction. Every business needs momentum to get started and continue growing. Crystal-clear business boundaries make it so much easier to gain traction and get going!
Easier marketability. “Jack of all trades, master of none” is not an effective marketing strategy and a one-way ticket to burnout. Clear service offerings to specific clients is the best way to make your business life infinitely easier.

Now that you’ve seen the benefits of setting those boundaries, it’s time to get started creating them!

3 Steps for Setting Boundaries

So what’s the best way to establish boundaries with people you’ve never met?

Know who you want to work with. From the kind of work you want to do most to the personality type of your ideal client, be clear with YOURSELF before you ever write a piece of marketing material for your clients.
Seek to understand the pain points of that ideal client. Not how you can help them, but rather how they need to be helped. How will what you offer them impact their life? Their business? Their bottom line?
Position yourself as a specialist or as an expert in your field. If the word “specialist” or “expert” is problematic, you can still use words like “focused” or “expertise” to outline the framework of what you do and for whom.

Believe it or not, specificity will actually increase your close rate. You may reach fewer people, but the number of people who choose to move forward will go up. It’s the very definition of work smarter, not harder. Added Bonus: No more burnout.

Need Help Nailing Down Your Target Audience?

GoBeyond SEO helps small businesses reach their ideal clients every day. Schedule a free discovery call with us to learn more about how we can help you narrow your focus so you can have the business you’ve always wanted.

Tags business success, Entrepreneurship, narrow target market, small business marketing, target audience

Lead Generation Small Business Marketing

Discover Your Magic Micro-Niche

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You’ve heard of the term niche, but have you heard of a micro-niche? Micro-niching will work wonders when you need to get more clients and make more money, quickly. Micro-niching will laser focus your attention on the best parts of your business.

We know you have questions, such as, what the heck is a micro-niche? Won’t a micro-niche make my market smaller and thereby yield fewer clients? Why would I want to do that?

Fact: You will make your reach smaller.

Fact: Your market will be smaller.

However, you will NOT yield fewer clients. In fact, it is just the opposite. Micro-niching makes your marketing efforts more customized, less expensive, and more effective.

Even if you already have a target market, you can still pick a micro-niche.

How to find your micro-niche

Here are 3 quick questions to ask yourself to find your micro-niche:

Who are your current favorite clients? Pick 3-5
Why are they your favorite clients? Do they share common characteristics?
What common problem do you solve for them?

Don’t look now, but you just found yourself a micro-niche. With the right game plan, you could book a few of your favorite clients over the course of a month. Book a free strategy session with our team to learn more!

Tags lead generation, narrow target market, small business marketing, target audience

Content Marketing Marketing

Put Their Needs First with an Audience-First Strategy

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Have you ever tried to draw an E on your forehead?

Take your finger, pretend it’s a magic marker, and write a capital letter E on your forehead. Don’t think. Don’t read ahead. Just do it.

Now, for the fun part.

Did you draw an E or an Ǝ? In other words, did you write it so it makes sense to you, or did you write it so it makes sense to someone facing you?

American professors Adam Galinsky and Maurice Schweitzer devised the five-second ‘E’ trick, which they believe separates those who are boss material from those who aren’t. Those who wrote the E so they could read it are more self-focused, a common trait among top leaders.

Legendary business mogul Jack Welch disagreed. He mused that those who draw the Ǝ — who are believed to be more community focused — value collaboration, which is more likely lead to longevity in leadership.

So what did you do? And, what does that have to do with marketing strategy?

When Communicating Your Brand, Write an “Ǝ”

Marketing firms tend to think in terms of how they can show potential clients that they’re the best. These tend to be agencies that are well-awarded and have awards all over their office, website, or social media. This is not an audience-first strategy.

Sounds good in theory, right? Sure. And there’s nothing fundamentally wrong with this, except for one big snag—clients aren’t really interested in you. They’re interested in what you can do for them, or, more specifically, what problem you can solve for them.

But how can clients know you’re really good at what you do? You have to demonstrate something about what your business does, right?

Let’s look at an example that demonstrates the difference between telling clients about you in a way that’s not very helpful, and telling clients about you in a way that communicates what you can do for them.

Consider the following business description:

Acme toy company is family-owned and operated and all of our toys have batteries included.

This information is just information. It’s not completely useful. It reads a lot like this: ƎƎƎƎƎƎƎ

Now, take a look at this variation, which shares the same information, but is worded differently to really speak to the audience:

Acme toys can be enjoyed right away because we’ve included batteries. We’re family-owned and operated, so we get it.

EEEEEEEEEE!

This slight variation puts the focus on the target audience (the parent or gift giver) and the sub audience or recipient (the child). The second line leads with the benefit (enjoyed right away) and demonstrates that your business is considering their needs.

So What Does an Audience-First Strategy Look Like in Real Life?

Of course, this snazzy example was helpful. But let’s take a closer look at how this would play out in your own brand messaging in real life with some tips.

Provide value in everything you share with your clients. How? Make your audience feel something! Make them smile, laugh, think, or even cry.

Be consistent about the value you deliver. Your audience will only come back if they expect you to continue giving them something.

Always communicate in such a way that you highlight the benefit that you deliver to your audience. Remember, it’s not about you—it’s about them.

You have an opportunity to do this in nearly every correspondence you have with your audience, whether it be a social media post, an email, or a blog article. Put their needs first and watch how this transforms your relationship with your clients.

Are you ready to begin demonstrating your worth to your clients? Contact us at GoBeyond SEO to discover more about our strategies for your digital marketing success!

Tags brand marketing, content marketing, target audience

Business Blogging Lead Generation sales

How To Narrow Your Target Market (And Why You Need To)

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Narrowing your market is a scary prospect. Why? You probably already know who your customers are, and the more people you reach, the more you sell. Here lies the rub. The broader your audience, the broader your messaging becomes. Your bandwidth needs to be able to handle all sorts of clients from all walks of life and realms of expertise. Because of all this, your leads end up taking a little longer to come in and the experience you want to provide isn’t what you’d like it to be.

When you focus your energy on targeting a narrower audience, your message can be more customized. Customized messages are the ones that get the real engagement, and when that happens, there is a higher chance they will trust you understand their needs. They will know you are a good fit for them.

As you consider who exactly that narrow audience is, consider:

Are they buying for themselves or someone else?
What are their biggest problems or desires as it relates to your business?
Where do they get their information as it relates to your business? Social media? Google search? Asking friends or colleagues?

After you’ve answered those, it’s time to refocus and zone in. Here are the top 3 areas of focus when determining how to narrow your target market.

How to Narrow Your Target Market in 3 Steps

1. Focus on Desired Outcomes

Your clients come to you for the benefits, not the features, you offer…so promote them. Instead of talking about what your business does, discuss the outcome or emotion your clients will get after working with you. Will they acquire more security in the financial realm? Feel more confident when preparing for mediation? Leave with lasting family memories? Whatever business you are in, reminding your audience what you can provide them with is what will get them interested, and get them at your proverbial doorstep.

2. Focus on Customer Experience

When you are pulled in multiple directions, it gets increasingly difficult to juggle all of the needs and desires of your clients. With a more specialized, narrower audience, you are able to customize your client experience. When you understand your client’s needs so well, which is far easier to do when you narrow your market, you make it easier for them to say yes. They are reassured you can do what they need with minimal effort. That in itself is a huge selling point.

3. Focus on Acquiring Trust

When you keep your focus on a very specific market, the reviews your business receives will also be specific. Your narrow market will find comfort in seeing themselves in those reviews, increasing trustworthiness within a market. Prior to even contacting you, they will feel confident in your expertise.

Narrowing your target audience helps you create customized messages for the right audience. This, in turn, will shorten the sales cycle and lower the barriers they may have to get to you. They’ll benefit from your specialized knowledge of their area, and you’ll benefit from the lower cost of focusing on a smaller market.

Do you need help identifying how to narrow your target market in your specific industry? Contact our team for more insights!

Tags lead generation, marketing, narrow target market, target audience

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