BY Rachel Cagle
Is your client’s intended audience not feeling properly represented in your client’s ads? According to a study by iHeartMedia, 44% of U.S. consumers feel ignored by brands. Here’s what you need to know.
Don’t Let Your Client’s Intended Audience Feel Overlooked
Many Marketers Don’t Truly Understand All Of Their Target Audience
According to iHeartMedia there’s a “disconnect between the average marketer’s life and that of the average consumer.” That disconnect leads to ads that marketers feel will connect to and reach every important consumer segment, but actually fall short.
“For example, in one finding, the research showed that consumers are much more likely to enjoy hunting, fishing and buying lottery tickets…while in contrast, pickleball and tennis top the list of activities marketers find cool.”
Our personal perceptions tend to guide our marketing decisions, whether we notice it or not. For those of us who live in cities or less rural areas, that can mean disconnect with more rural consumers.
And that disconnect can extend beyond the differences between where marketers and consumers live. If a marketer’s values are starkly different than those of their client’s intended audience…those tend to shine through in ads. Your client’s target audience’s perceptions and values need to come first and be highlighted in ads.
Disconnect Hurts Sales
What happens when consumers feel overlooked and ignored? They don’t make purchases from the brand doing the advertising.
iHeartRadio says that 72% of consumers won’t make purchases from brands that are ignoring them. Another 75% will go as far as to pay more to support a brand that shares their values instead.
So, what can you do to effectively reach your client’s intended audience?
Get to Know Them
For starters, you and your client need to make sure you genuinely know your client’s intended audience. You need to be 100% certain:
- Who they are
- Where they live
- What they’re interested in
- What they want to purchase within the next year
- How they want those purchases to help them feel
Even if you think you know, it’s always good to double check, especially if they lead different lives than you.
A good place to start is by looking up their profile on AudienceSCAN on AdMall by SalesFuel. There, you can learn the answers to all the bullet points above plus some. That information will help you craft ads that appropriately represent your client’s target audience.
Rethink Your Investment in Influencers
Many marketers turn to influencers to try to bridge the gap between their experiences and their intended audience’s. The problem is, 82% of consumers say that they’re notably not swayed by professional influencers.
Instead, consumers tend to be influenced most by their communities, friends, family, and religious leaders, says iHeartMedia. So, your client should consider interviewing people from local communities for ads you’re going to feature in those areas. It’d be a pleasant surprise and make your client’s brand seem more in touch and trustworthy.
Redefine Luxury
What do you think of when someone says the word “luxury”? Is it yachts, designer labels and expensive trips in foreign parts?
Well, for many consumers, luxury items are actually practical indulgences.
iHeartMedia names buying name brand products and premium-grade meat as example luxuries.
So, one avenue you and your client could try is framing their products as luxurious without the luxurious price tag. Show people achieving every-day victories and treating themselves to your client’s products.
Once you and your client understand the interests and lifestyles of their target audiences, their ads will perform better. If your client’s intended audience lives differently than you, it’s time to refresh your database on them.
Photo by: Judy Beth Morris