Targeted Marketing for the 21st Century

Posted by Staff Writer on Monday, June 29, 2009 at 12:29pm.

Different techniques work better for different demographic groups. A marketing technique that is successful with 20-year old men in South Africa may not work with 50-year-old women in Rwanda.

Who are your targeted customers? Many entrepreneurs are unable to answer this deceptively easy question. Not having a clear market in mind can derail even the most promising small business. Advertising, delivery, product and service must be framed to fit the targeted demographic. Age, sex, education and income bracket play a part in the demographic composition of the targeted market.

Websites and ecommerce may not be the best way to reach customers, if the targeted demographic is women over 60 living on the east coast of Africa. While internet access and computer usage is on the rise among all demographic groups, it is far more effective among younger customers. This is because younger customers are more computer savvy, and older customers are wary of changing long-established buying habits.

African entrepreneurs shouldn’t shortchange technology - especially cell phone technology. The growing use of mobile phones is revolutionizing African marketing, allowing consumers - and business owners - to skip many steps of technology. In many cases, consumers never purchase a cumbersome desktop computer but go straight to the latest web-enabled cell technology.

Older customers respond better to traditional methods of advertising. However, they respond best to word-of-mouth advertising and marketing that builds on existing relationships. An excellent way to capitalize on this is to offer a fee or gift to customers who refer friends and relatives to you. Another top technique is offering the product to customers on a free trial basis. Psychological research shows that when you give someone a gift, they feel obligated to give you their business.

Older customers are less impressed by advertising, hard-sell messages, outrageous claims, animation and fancy graphics. They recognize all of these features for exactly what they are - flashy techniques to grab attention. Younger customers are attracted by those techniques because they equate eye-catching graphics with a hip, modern, hi-tech product.

The same factors come into play with marketing, regardless of the targeted demographic. Word-of-mouth advertising is effective in every age group. However, older customers may rely on trusted friends and community members they have known a lifetime. Younger people get referrals from “friends” they met recently on Myspace, Facebook or Twitter.

Customers of all ages appreciate a streamlined buying process. Clients appreciate a salesperson who will take the time to educate them about their choices –especially if a product is new to them. However, an older customer may not be familiar with a mobile phone, while a younger one needs to be trained only about the latest features.

Simplify communication and choices. In this age of information overload, customers actually appreciate having fewer - but higher quality - choices. Why offer three brands of a product if one is clearly superior, and has a competitive price?

Both older and younger customers respond to group influence. Older clients are swayed by influential, established members of the community including local leaders in business, religion, social and politics. Younger people respond well when a core “in-group” of hip young people adopts the product early.

Different advertising messages work for separate groups. Older customers often want to avoid or minimize losses. They are attracted by products that promote safety and security. Younger people, with a world  of ever-expanding technology and a promising future, are more attracted to marketing messages that paint a rosy picture of the future.

Some business owners even go beyond the demographic and visualize an “ideal” customer, including name, age, occupation and even what styles that person wears. Then they create marketing materials that address that customer’s concerns and questions.  While knowing your targeted market does not need to be this detailed, it can be very useful.