Are You Talking To Me? Reach Your Target Audience ...
February 24, 2012 By Ritchenya Dodd

Are You Talking to Me?

Reach your target audience

What kinds of people do you like to meet?

The person who launches into an explanation of how great he or she is before allowing you to sneak a word in edgewise? Or someone who asks you an interesting question that sparks a lively conversation?

The answer is obvious … so why are there still so many “me messages” in the business world?

Try this: go to the Web sites of three of your competitors. How much front-page space do they spend talking about themselves—as opposed to the clients and customers they serve, and the solutions they provide?

It can seem tough to engage someone you’ve just met … what if you say the wrong thing? But great conversationalists walk into a room armed with tips and tools to quickly turn any conversation to topics that will interest the person with whom they’re speaking.

Businesses, professionals and organizations that effectively communicate with their target audiences use the same approach—by emphasizing client-facing communications across their marketing platforms.

What Keeps You Up at Night?

Particularly in these anxiety-ridden times, it’s important to focus as much attention on your target audience as possible.

A lawyer I worked with used to ask his clients, “What keeps you up at night?” They would share their problems, and he would try to help solve them. Sometimes these conversations led to new work, sometimes they didn’t. But these chats strengthened the bond between lawyer and client, helping him to be viewed as a valued business partner.

So how do you translate these conversations to marketing messages? Create structure and content for your Web site, marketing materials, and business development pitches that focus first on the needs of your audience and how you fill those needs.

For example:

Identify your target audience upfront – You don’t have much time to hook your reader. The sooner they know your message is intended for them, the more likely they’ll read on. Identifying the types of clients and customers you serve reassures prospects they can expect a relevant message.

Provide specific solutions – Go beyond general claims of quality and excellence to identify the specific services and products that distinguish you from your competitors. Answer this question: “Why do clients and customers choose us?”   

Offer examples – Provide relevant success stories. They should identify the types of businesses served, the problems they faced, the roles you played in solving their problems, and the outcomes.

Give freebies – Create communications, electronic and hardcopy, that are useful—those that readers want to keep rather than sending to the circular file. 

On that last point, I once asked an in-house counsel at a major corporation whether there was any marketing material from law firms that he read. He rubbed his chin and replied that he only read information that helped him do his job better.

From this feedback, I created a series of industry-focused slick sheets for one law firm that provided tips to clients on specific topics of concern. They were very popular; some clients ordered them by the stack to distribute to their contacts, and others asked for permission to post them to their Web site and forward them via email.  

The bottom line is to apply the Golden Rule to marketing communications. Before pushing “send,” ask yourself: “If I were my reader, would I read this?”

--R

Are You Talking To Me? Reach Your Target Audience ...
February 24, 2012 By Ritchenya Dodd

DMC Closing Its Doors
October 01, 2009
DMC has closed its doors to make way for new career opportunities. For transition assistance, please contact us through the Contact page.

Sell It to Me Straight: Where to Put Your Marketing Resources Now
July 21, 2009
In addition to cutting their marketing budgets, many firms are redirecting general marketing resources to more focused client development. While it makes sense to reach out to current and prospective clients, if you don’t have a powerful marketing message—which clearly distinguishes you from other service providers—you could end up wasting time and resources. In an article I recently wrote, I argue that the most effective form of marketing in today’s climate is personal marketing—which focuses on the professionals at a firm who have the strongest ability to bring in business.

Sell It to Me Straight: About the Blog & Author
March 31, 2009 By Ritchenya Dodd - Dodd Marketing Communications
'Sell It to Me Straight' is written by Ritchenya A. Dodd, principal of Dodd Marketing Communications. Ritchenya is a lawyer and award-winning former journalist.