January 15, 2021
Locating your audience on social media is often the easy part. You can research with keywords, watch the competition, or even use a social listening tool. The bottom line is that the science is pretty cut and dry.
When it comes to engaging that targeted audience, the content becomes another story. It’s not always easy to know where to begin once you have everyone’s ear.
So, buckle up, because we’re going to off-road down the path of customer engagement and retention.
Facebook is the king when it comes to creating mirror images of an audience that would be interested in what your business offers. They increase the probability of generating high-quality leads and offer more value on your ad spend.
A source audience (also known as a seed audience) can be created using data from the following:
It’s an audience segment that meets all the criteria for new prospects. Lookalike audiences will help you find your best customers. It’s a sophisticated matchmaker for marketers.
Multiple lookalike audiences can also be used at the same time to refine your marketing efforts and focus campaigns. Target ads so that each audience sees slightly different content.
For example, the NHL does this by using geographically targeted ads with team memorabilia. That speaks to specific fanbases and creates a much higher sense of relevancy for your messaging.
If you don’t have a list yet, Facebook still gives you precise targeting options to build your own audience. This includes everything from demographics (think region, job, income) to online behavior and interaction.
Once you have an audience in place, it’s important to structure your ad content for who it’s speaking to. Ask: “Does this language appeal directly to the market I have defined?” Check the tone and voice to ensure it matches your brand. Ensure you are including visuals and media that make sense.
It’s important to consistently test your messaging and tweak it as needed. People are not robots and they will never fit into a box. Even if someone likes your content today, they may despise it tomorrow. A brand must constantly evolve and the best data for ad campaigns comes from A/B testing.
As you focus on reaching your target audience, you may need to adjust your social media strategy. Use the research you gain to adjust things like:
And anything else you can think to tweak for different results. Use A/B testing to refine content over time to learn exactly what type of messaging works best.
The results of an A/B test will provide the additional insight you may not have had when you first created your target market statement. Now it’s time to do a little more research, and incorporate everything you’ve learned!
Revisit your target audience definition frequently. Make sure it always accurately describes the people you want to reach on social media. The definition is guaranteed to change over time.
For example, the target market for Nintendo in the 1980s (kids) are now adults. So the demographic of “age” has dramatically changed. Now, instead of a cutting-edge game system, the messaging is more about nostalgia.
Connecting with your target audience takes time and research. The more you put into delineating your target audience segments, the easier it will be to market to them. Know Your Customer is a modern marketing technique that ensures the more time you spend understanding people, the better products and services you can offer.
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