Last week I wrote about how to think multi channel strategy when working with your brand, based upon what goals, results and outcomes you are looking to achieve. The goals, results and outcomes are very much dependent on to whom you are communicating your brand since your brand is a reflection of what others think of you. So this week I was thinking that we should look into the different target audiences and how to find them.
Differentiation towards different target audiences
When looking at different target audiences, you should always keep in mind that your core values are the same and that these should always be in the center of your communication, but since you are reaching for different persons that will interpret your communication differently you have to adjust your message to be aligned to
- The outcome your are reaching for
- The person you are talking to
- The situation that you are in
Different people act and perceive things differently in different situations, and that is why you have to plan ahead for how you are going to act and communicate to send the right signals to the right people.
Groups of target audiences
The target audience can consist of many different groups and sub groups, and they can be divided by different factors. Demographic variables such as age group, gender, marital status, etc. are often used for traditional marketing; while psychographic variables such as personality, values, attitudes, interests, etc. are more often used for digital and social marketing. I believe in using both for your personal brand, but you probably already know the persons you are targeting so for that reason I would use them as a base for how to communicate with each individual. Let us look at a few individuals and groups of people you are likely to encounter or want to meet:
- parents and siblings
- spouse
- children
- extended family
- friends
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- future employer
- current employer
- collaboration partners
- clients
- future clients
- venture capitalists
- competitors
Make your own list, preferably with names of the person, where you are likely or plan to meet them, and also what are the variables for the specific person and the specific situation. And while your at it, add the wanted outcome for your communication with each person. It might be that one person are connected to more than one situation and/or outcome. When that is the case, make a separate line for each combination.
After trying this technique for a while you will feel that it will come naturally to you, but I would still recommend you to use it for new contacts.
Ola Rynge is an entrepreneur with a passion for the personal development side of personal branding (covered in this blog) as well as the application of personal branding and social media for entrepreneurs and small businesses (covered in The Rynge Blog).
His company, The Rynge Group specializes in market oriented small business and idea development, including social media strategies and implementations.
