I love how you recommend that you ask your customers what it is THEY like.

I would LOVE to provide my clients with video tutorials on how to use their new blogs – but they tell me they want a PDF that they can print out and have on their lap. UGH! Not what I want, but it’s what they want. My tutorials are now in PDF which is not MY preferred method but theirs!

I guess, in other words, be PREPARED to hear something you don’t want to hear when you ask!

I think you mentioned a key point at the end — many people don’t know how to figure out who their target market is. I addressed this in my latest post (albeit aimed at copywriters…) I think reviewing your own sales data is a great place to start, if your product or service has been around for a while. Check for demographics like gender, geographic location, age, etc.

If it is a new product, it is a good idea to think about what need it fills, and then decide what type of person has this need. You can research further into their interests. For example, it might be as easy as Googling “What type of marketing strategies attract male buyers?” and you will likely get blog entries and articles giving you suggestions.

Lastly, ask your customers why they like your products. If 70% of them say that they like your widget because it is red, then you know that you need to push the fact that it is red in your marketing copy (and, by extension, a large part of your target audience likes red widgets…)

To paraphrase one of your points, the more effort you put into profiling your target market, the luckier you’ll get…

~Graham

Graham Strongs last blog post..Profiling Your Target Market