Ways To Figure Out Your Brand’s Primary Demographic
Introduction
This sounds like a college business class lecture, but it is something that’s truly fundamental to a brand’s marketing strategies.
The primary demographic, or target demographic, dictates how a brand will market itself to the public. What platforms should be used? How should each platform be used? Should traditional or digital media be the main focus?
So how do you figure out who your brand’s primary demographic is? It turns out that there are several ways to go about this process.
Check out what some of our branding experts had to say on this matter.
Analyze Your Current Client Base
This step is the first of many that you can take. If you are an established business, you have customers. Creating a way to track their demographic information can help you in analyzing their data and ultimately help you in the creation of future marketing campaigns.
“Using programs that track the client’s information can be very helpful in the long run when you are trying to figure out where your current demographic is falling,” says Matt Seaburn, Partner and President of Rent A Wheel. “Understanding who is most interested in your product can help you investigate two things: who is buying your product now and where are you falling short in connecting with the demographic you want to target?”
“Analyzing your current demographics can give you an idea of who the easiest demographic group will be to target,” says Travis Killian, Owner and CEO of Everlasting Comfort. “If you know who is being drawn to your products naturally because of their preferences, then you know where you can start in creating targeted marketing campaigns.”
Get Inside Their Head
One of the classic practices for creating brand materials that target a demographic is to make a persona or two that you can create campaigns for. In order to do this, you have to get inside their head and learn to think like the clients you are currently selling to.
“This strategy really works. There’s a reason it’s one of the things they teach students studying business and marketing,” says Andrea Xu, CEO of Umamicart. “Sit down and research the people that are buying your products or services most frequently. How old are they? Where do they spend their free time? How do they view money? Answering these questions from their point of view can help you see how they are viewing your product and where they see the value in it.”
“Coming up with these ‘consumer profiles’ is not only an eye-opening experience for your team, but it helps your brand become a better business overall,” says Rym Selmi, Founder of MiiRO. “Not only does this help you create advertisements and meet your clients where they are, but it helps your team develop a sense of understanding and empathy for the people they are marketing to.”
Conduct a Case Study
Sometimes a simple analysis of the current audience is not enough and a more extensive look into current consumers is needed. This is where case studies can come into play and benefit a brand that is trying to figure out their target demographic.
“Pulling information from all previous campaigns, regardless of the platform they were associated with, is a great way to formulate an educated conclusion on your target demographic,” says Lisa Odenweller, CEO and Founder of Kroma. “These case studies can provide a wealth of knowledge to a brand on their target audience.”
“Simply analyzing social media trends or specific campaigns is not enough to fully understand a brand’s target demographic. If it is a newer brand that hasn’t established a primary target audience, then a case study will be enlightening,” says Amanda E. Johnson, Chief Marketing Officer for TatBrow. “A case study is a much bigger picture of the organization that looks at more than the campaign’s responses. Examining the promotion times, the length of campaigns, and the overall demographic during each of these advertising events can give an organization a broader scope of their influence as they determine who their target demographic is.”
Learn to Prioritize
There is a reason that organizations seek to target specific demographics. The more specific the campaign can be to a group of individuals, the more likely you are to make an impact because it feels more personal.
“Casting a wide net might seem like a good way to draw in more people, but in reality people are more likely to pay attention to your campaigns if they feel like it was made for them,” says Michael Waxman, Co-founder and CEO of Sundays for Dogs. “Think about it, are you going to be more interested in an advertisement that is general and made for the general population or one that feels like it knows your daily struggles and things you need in your life?”
“The entire purpose of understanding your target demographic is so you can market specifically to them, so it makes sense that looking at the ways you are already catering to a specific type of consumer is a good way to hone in on that target audience and learn what demographic you’re already catering to,” says Jordan Nathan, Founder and CEO of Caraway. “Understanding what you’re already doing can help.
Look at Your Product or Service
If you had never heard of the product or service you are selling, what would draw it to you? If you had to gift it to someone, who would appreciate it most? Sometimes your product itself is prone to attracting certain demographics.
“Even if it’s a subconscious choice, many of us actually create something meant for a specific type of person,” says Chris Cronin, Co-founding partner of Kitanica. “There’s no such thing as a product that every person on Earth will want, so take yourself back to the invention and brainstorming phase of creating your product or service. Who were you envisioning as the target back then? It can be easy to get lost in the process of creating marketing campaigns and trying to market to a broad market, but narrowing your focus can be beneficial and help you customize the advertisements to that individual.”
“If you’ve done a case study or profiled the type of individual you’re picturing buying your product, then you already have a good idea of who might be interested,” says Dan Potter Managing Director and CEO of CRAFTD. “If you’re looking to narrow down your target market even further, take a look at what you’re trying to sell and evaluate what you can do to make it even more specific for them. How can your products help them and what can you do to let them know that?”
Conclusion
It sounds like a lot of introspection and evaluation of the brand as a whole and the product or service will be the key to figuring out your brand’s primary demographic. Exploring these details within your organization will also assist you in empathizing with your consumer and making effective marketing strategies in the future.
