A target audience is like your favourite group of people you want to tell a joke to because you know they´ll laugh.
It’s not everyone who walks by, but only those who understand exactly your references, jokes and know what you have to offer.
For an entrepreneur, it’s simply a group of people who are interested in your products or services – and, importantly, willing to pay for it. What is great.
So if you sell pet products, your „target group“ is people who love their pets and certainly don’t mind spending more money on quality food or toys.
But don’t confuse the target group with the customer persona. What is a Customer Persona in Digital Marketing is covered in this article.
Table of contents
- What is a Target Audience
- What Tools can we Use for a Defined Target Audience
- Example of a target audience
1. What is a Target Audience?
As previously mentioned, a target audience refers to a specific group of people who are not only interested in your product or service but are also willing to pay for it. Therefore, your marketing strategy should be aimed specifically at this group in order to be effective.
But how exactly should you characterize your target audience? To do this, you need to look beyond basic demographics and focus on several key aspects that define their behavior, needs, and motivations.
Defining your target audience include some key aspects: Demographics, Geography, Psychography, Behavior and Technology.
Demographics
Demographics helps to determine which population groups your product or service is intended for. Age, gender, education, profession, family status and place of residence.
- Age – Imagine targeting those who don´t say ´´what is TikTok?´´, but also those who remember when the internet was powered by dial-up. In short, people who are the right age for your project.
- Gender – This one is simple – your product is for everyone?
- Education – Focus on those who know what SEO means, but don´t forget those who think SEO is a new kind of peasant technique. It is always good to adapt the content to the level of education.
- Income – Your target group should be willing to invest in a quality product.
- Professional status -Are you looking for employees, entrepreneurs or business owners who manage their own startup?
- Family status – The target audience can be different. From single people looking for the next product to make their lives easier, to families with children.
Geography
- Place of residence – It doesn’t matter if they live in the city, where they buy coffee on the corner, or in small villages, where the biggest trend is to shop at the farmer’s market.
- Climate – for example, sun protection products or winter clothing are relevant to different geographies.
Psychography
Psychography opens the door to more personalized and targeted communication.
It provides a deeper insight into the lifestyle. Psychography include:
- Lifestyle style – The target group can be defined according to hobbies and interests. Imagine the target audience as a group of athletes, music enthusiasts and adventures. They have so many hobies they can´t fit them all into one calendar. Can you find yours customers?
- Values – Your products can be intended for those who have similar values. You´ll find those who separate their trash even on vacation, shop only at stores that sell vegan socks. A green lifestyle is so important to them that even the plants in their apartment have their own passports.
- Personality and preferences – Finally, we have the extroverts who could entertain an entire nightclub, and the introverts who feel at home only with a good book and a cup of tea.
Behavior
Our customer is the ultimate mystery. Some shop online in their pajamas at 2 AM, while others brave the the wilds of brick – and- mortar stores. Everyone is different and you have to find out which one is right for you.
- Shopping behavior – It can relate to how customers shop (online, offline). Or what products they prefer, or how often they shop. Some will scroll for hours, comparing every possile option, while others just grab the first thing they see and call it a day.
- Motivation and needs – Takes into account what motivates customers to buy – convenience, price, quality. What makes customers tick? Maybe it´s convenience (they want it fast), maybe it´s price, or maybe it´s quality. The right combination of these factors, and voilá – the perfect purchase.
- Brand loyalty – Some customers are so loyal to a brand, they´d tattoo the logo on their forehead. Others just grab whatever´s trending.
Technology
Understading where your audience spends their time can help you choose the right marketing channels. Because let´s face it, trying to sell a product to someone who´s always on Facebook using email is like trying to sell ice to an Eskimo in winter.
- Preferred devices – Some customers swear by their smartphones, never leaving home without them, while others are loyal to their tablets or desktops. It´s like a version on the I´m a Mac, I´m a PC.
- Online behavior – Different groups have their favourite online hangouts – some are all over Facebook, while others spend hours scrolling through TikTok or Instagram. Some on them reading only emails like it´s their job.
2. What Tools can we Use for a Defined Target Audience?
If you already know what information about our target group is important, we can start collecting this information from various sources.
We´ll look at some of them.
If you are not a beginner and have your own website and social media, it will be easier for you to create your target audience. If you don’t have any of these, don’t despair.
2.1. Analytical tools
Google Analytics is like a detective for your website. It gives you all the juicy details about your visitors. Who they are? What they like? What they´re doing? Where they´re coming from? What devices do they use? It knows more about your audience than you do.
Got a business Facebook and Instagram account? Be aware, that Facebook Insights and Instagram Insights are like your social media gossip girls. They´ll spill the beans on who´s following you, what they´re into and how they´reacting to your posts.
On the other side LinkedIn Analytics is as your professional stalker. It tells you who´s checking out your content, what their job titles are and how they´re conecting with your posts.
2.2. Surveys and Questionnaires
Google Forms or SurveyMonkey, with these tools, you can craft your own survey and get direc feedback from your target audience. Focus on their preferences, habits and needs.
2.3. CRM ( Customer Relationship Managment)
If you´re using a CRM tool you can defining your target audience very easily. Hubspot, Salesforce or Zoho. It´s like having a personal assistant who knows everything about your customers. These tools let you dive deep into data like age, gender, location, shopping habits and more.
2.4. Statistics from Contests
Running contests? They´re not just for fun. They´re a goldmine of insights. By gathering data on participants, their preferences, and demographics. You can better understand your target audience. You and your customers will have fun. Everyone likes games.
2.5. Third-party and Analytical Platforms
Statista and Pew Research. These platforms are like the ultimate cheat sheet for demographic data and trends across various fields. It´s like having a crystall ball to predict What your target market is up to.
SEMrush and Ahres give you the inside scoop on what people in your industry are searching for and which keywords they´re using.
2.6 Feedback and Customer Reviews
Customers love to share their thoughts. Always ask your customers for feedback. They can best advise what they would like, what they are looking for and what needs to be improved.
2.7. Behavioral Data
Hotjar or Crazy Egg. These tools give you a sneak peek into how users interact with your website. Click maps and visual heatmaps show where visitors click, what catches their eye and where they stop scrolling.
Thanks to these tools, you can get data, which you will then use to create your target audience.
In the next chapter we will create our target audience for the pet shop. We assume that, we have not a website and social media. If we want to obtain data we have to use static tools and monitor the competition.
3. Example of a Target Audience
3.1. Defining of Target Audience in the United Kingdom
Based on data from Statista and competitor analysis, we have identified the following characteristics of the target audience:
Pet Owners in the United Kingdom
Source: Statista.com
- Dogs: The largest market segment includes dog owners (approximately 36% according to Statista).
- Cats: The second-largest group consists of cat owners (around 29%).
- Other Pets: The remaining market comprises owners of small animals, such as rodents, birds, reptiles, and aquarium fish.
Customer Demographics
- Age: The primary target group is customers aged 25–45 years.
- Gender: Statista reports a slight predominance of women (approximately 55%), particularly in the categories of food and accessories for dogs and cats.
- Income: Middle and higher-income groups. Competitors offer products aimed at customers willing to invest in high-quality food and accessories.
- Education: Secondary and higher education.
- Family status: Family with children, teenagers and lonely people.
- Professional status: People as employees and as CEOs of companies
Geography
Pet owners in the United Kingdom are a diverse group with distinct geographical characteristics.
- Urban areas: Major cities like London, Manchester, Birmingham, and Glasgow have a high concentration of pet owners. In urban environments, smaller dogs, cats, birds, and small rodents are particularly popular.
- Rural areas: In rural regions, such as counties like Yorkshire, Devon, or Cornwall, pet owners often have larger dog breeds and farm animals.
- Coastal regions: Areas like Brighton, Bournemouth, and Scarborough have many dog owners who take advantage of beaches for walking their pets.
Psychographic Segmentation of Pet Owners in the UK
- Animal lowers as family members consider their pets as family members and invest in their comfort, health, and emotional well-being.
- Practical Pet Owners:They primarily see pets as companions or helpers and prefer practical solutions. they own pets because of the happiness it brings them.
- Outdoor Enthusiasts with Pets: They perform joint outdoor activities with their dogs.
- Adoption Advocates: These owners have adopted their pets from shelters and strongly support ethical treatment of animals.
- Eco Pet Owners: They care about the environmental impact of the products they buy for their pets, prioritizing sustainability and ethical production.
Behavior
- Digital shoppers: prefer purchasing pet supplies online.
- Young and Generous Owners: Generation Z and Millennials (aged 18-34) are willing to spend more on their pets compared to older age groups.
- Health and Wellness-Focused Owners: These owners prioritize their pets‘ health and invest in products that promote well-being.
- Eco owners: prefer sustainable and ethical options.
Technology
This includes 2 parts of customers. Those who like to shop online and are looking for the latest technology to simplify the care of their pets. And those who prefer brick-and-mortar stores.
