How to hit your target market every time

THE IDEAL CUSTOMER: ME

My customer experience got me thinking about how nutraceutical marketers seem to ignore me.

I’m in a market segment better labeled “grumpy old men” (GOM).

Not seriously.

I know I’m in this because my wife keeps telling me. Old. Irritable. Curmudgeon.

And I feel ignored by supplement companies.

How is that?

For one thing, I have subscribed to numerous alternative health newsletters online. What I have received is invariably so widespread that I get the impression that the companies that ship them don’t even know I exist.

This is surprising, as I lay out two of the main criteria of an ideal customer.

First, I have income to spend that I allocate to supplements.

Second, I am very, very concerned about how to curb age-related health problems.

This is just the beginning.

If you’re doing good research, you will know some additional useful marketing data for me and my fellow GOMs.

Like everyone else, we have certain typical needs. We want to feel important. We want you to get to know us and acknowledge our greatest health concerns.

Talking to me and my GOM colleagues will also tell them that we don’t consider ourselves “old.” We despise feeling obsolete or removed from mainstream youth culture.

We are increasingly concerned about longevity.

We are readers and information seekers. This feature alone makes us receptive to advertising.

Okay, there are some important features you can use to persuade me to know you, like you, trust you … and buy from you.

GOMs make up more than 10% of the US population Adding women in our age group to the equation more than doubles the size of the market.

I am more than a customer who feels ignored.

I am also a marketer who has figured out how to target the market for my segment. And the strategy I discovered works for all other market segments as well.

My experience in marketing a paid subscription newsletter illustrates what I found.

The conversion rate is around 30%, with subscription renewals at approximately 75%.

That’s a pretty good conversion and a very low abandon rate.

What I did was examine my free subscription list first to find only one demographic: older peers with my same health issues.

Then I sent that group to a landing page specifically designed to address their needs.

That is all.

THE EASIEST WAY TO REACH THE GOAL

What I have described is widely known among marketers who use email marketing.

This practice is known as list segmentation.

In other words, create a particular segment from a larger subscriber list and then address the particular needs of that segment.

Conceptually it is nothing new. It just capitalizes on the old marketing adage of finding out what people want and then delivering it to them.

What I did has three key components that apply to all markets.

1) Define and select a target segment from a larger list.

This is quite simple, as the email hosting services have already set up the technical steps for list segmentation.

2) Create a persuasive marketing copy that hits all the hot buttons for that segment. This is crucial for people in your target segment to take the action you want them to take, that is, buy your products.

Simply put, this step is all about communication. If Anthony Robbins’ definition is correct (and it is), then communication is the result you get.

If people are not buying, they are not communicating.

3) Rinse and repeat for each segment you want to hit.

There is no limit to the number of segments you can define in your list.

I have mentioned only a few. The number seems unlimited.

My best copywriting mentor, Joshua Boswell, once mentioned that he divided a client list into 72 segments. 72!

My experience is not unique. It’s a common story that applies to all marketing segments across all industries.

Wait, there’s more!

ADDITIONAL BENEFIT FOR YOUR KING

Discovering high-value customers through list segmentation also has another beneficial side. Allows you to remove ‘inactive’ subscribers.

I don’t want to be cynical here. The truth is, you probably created your list based on bait, a free offer of some kind. That is a good start. People love free stuff.

However, the vast majority of people who get free information will not buy anything from you. Most likely, they will even ignore your emails, without even unsubscribing. They stay on your list forever, without buying anything.

While that can be disconcerting and perhaps even annoying, it can also be expensive. Email hosting providers charge more as your list grows. Eliminating the “eternal non-buyers” allows you to narrow your list down to actual and likely buyers.

Therefore, the cost savings can be substantial. And spending time and money on just who’s left can skyrocket your ROI.

NEXT STEPS

So far I have limited myself to describing the concept of list segmentation and what you can expect from it. It is clearly a fundamental strategy behind successful email marketing.

Of course, all the high-tech bells and whistles of list segmentation still rely on persuasive copy. Ultimately, that’s what drives every marketing strategy, regardless of the platform.

That’s where I come in.

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