One of the most common questions we’re asked is “we have customers in loads of different sectors; who do we target in terms of marketing or communications?!”
It’s a really key question, the more so with the growth of digital communications. Digital provides organisations with the capability to find, speak to, and engage with, customers, gathering feedback and data along the way to refine their approach.
From the word go, you need to show that you recognise a customer’s problems, and you know how solve them. But many companies have loads of (very different) customers – and I am talking here about B2B primarily – so whose problem/s should they focus on?
There are many layers to this question, but here are some initial thoughts to help guide your thinking:
1) Communications Objectives
First, think hard about your comms objectives. What are they? Perhaps you’re trying to increase awareness within a specific industry? Or change perceptions? Are you trying to stir cold leads? Improve lead quality? Or maybe it’s a new product you’re launching within an entirely new sector?
Your choice of priority audience/s is likely to be guided by the answer to this crucial question and could well be influenced by commercial criteria such as the market size, the opportunity you foresee, the levels of competition, the uniqueness of your offer etc etc.
2) Consider Key Influencers
Next, map your supply chain…and ask yourself, “who within the chain are the key influencer/s?” In other words, who is most likely to facilitate a sale and/or act as an ambassador for your business? It may not be the person who actually uses your product; it could be the one whose relationship/interaction with the end-user, allied with their professional credibility, makes them very important indeed. A plumber recommending a particular brand of boiler to a householder, for example.
Analysing your supply chain may show that actually there are only a handful of key links in that supply chain who hold the whip-hand in terms of driving sales. For whatever reason, their opinion carries a lot of weight, so they may be the best people to target.
3) Buyer Personas
Burrow down. We get briefs which say the target is ‘big engineering companies’. That’s not targeting. It’s too vague. Can you identify the job holders within those companies that you need to reach? These are the people for whom you create buyer personas so you can fully understand specifically what they need to do their job, how you can best reach them, and clarify how your business meets their needs.
Google Analytics is a useful and oft forgotten tool for personas. As well as better understanding what work issues they want to solve from the webpages they visit etc, you can gather information about visitors’ geographic locations, demographics and even personal interests.
Do your research to verify your thinking – you may believe this individual is likely to be focused on buying only premium quality when, in fact, financial constraints across the industry mean that’s unlikely. This is really important – it will help define your messaging, answering the all-important ‘Why us?’ question. We’ve commissioned research at this point in one campaign, which successfully challenged some long-held views and directed our focus. I also regularly chat to trade magazine editors about the key issues for their readership. This ensures our features/news releases/blogs etc resonate with their/our target audience and also offers unbiased and impartial insights which can help our wider campaign activity.
Remember also that an individuals’ needs may change, particularly in a highly regulated environment so be alive to this and keep the process of developing personas a dynamic one and under review.
4) Customer Journey Mapping
Once you know who your key audiences are for your campaign, you’re well on the way! Consider their customer journey to purchase (www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-find-lost-customers-gerry-vincent) and work out how you can support them better on the journey towards a purchase.
Again, gather feedback from a range of sources if you can (e.g. sales, customer service, Analytics) rather than guessing – although creating a strawman can help focus thinking. You want to create a smooth omni-channel experience for your customers, so their experience of your brand at every stage supports your values and your brand proposition.
5) Where to Start
Once this is done, consider which stage/s of buying you want/need to focus on with your communications activity. A glance at a sales funnel should help identify what materials might be created at each stage to encourage a purchase.
Accept you will have to prioritise. Unless you have unlimited funds and resources, you can’t be all things to all people.
After all this, you should then be in a very good position to create content that resonates and which supports your sales offer – but remember keep testing and keep trialling!
