What do you do when you realize you’re chasing the wrong target audience?
I was in the middle of a first coaching session with “Brenda” not long ago when I heard her say a phrase that made my warning sign go off.
It sounded something like this:
“I want to help people who don’t understand what (my offering) can do for them.”
It’s not the first time I’ve heard a similar statement from a coaching client.
As a matter of fact, I hear it so often I now have a name for this concept — I call it the “halo effect.”
And when people suffer from it, they can end up focusing on the wrong target audience, sometimes for years. Sometimes this one mistake — made early on — can make it impossible to build a profitable business.
I have a resource for you in this article — a powerful trifecta that will help you build a profitable, high-value offer. Scroll down to grab it!
The devastating consequences of the halo effect
The halo effect happens when business owners want to help. It’s deeply rooted in a desire to serve. It comes from people who want to make a difference in the world with their gifts.
These are all beautiful things.
But when the people you aim to serve aren’t even aware they need your help, you’re setting your business up for long years of struggle. You may spend years pushing to get people to accept that they need what you offer. And you may never generate the profits you’re aiming for.
Your business may not even make it.
This is the kind of business mistake that weakens the foundation you’ll build your success on.
Why your customer avatar must have a “felt need”
Your customer avatar is a description of your ideal customer. And your ideal customer is someone who:
- Is aware they have a challenge that needs to be solved — that’s their “felt need”
- Recognizes the issue is important enough that they must take action to solve it
- Has the ability to pay to solve the problem
These are all important if you want to be profitable, so let’s weave them into one statement you can make into your new mantra:
“My ideal customer deeply feels the need for a solution to their problem — and they can afford to pay for it.”
Why your customer must be willing and able to invest
A felt need is one thing — the right target audience isn’t just willing, they’re able to pay you for your expertise.
It’s hard to build a profitable business with a low-value offer. You need a huge audience, and you need to sell your offer constantly.
That’s a recipe for burnout. You don’t want to start resenting your business or your customers.
Refine your focus
By the way — is this article making you feel vaguely uncomfortable?
Are you wondering if you set off in the wrong direction and got your customer profile all wrong?
Don’t worry — there’s a solution. And that’s what this piece is about. I have a resource that will help! Keep reading.
We’re going to talk about how to pivot your business and re-orient it toward the customer you want to reach — the one who knows they need help and is ready to pay for it.
Let’s dig in and make it happen!
How to define your new target audience
Whether you call them your perfect customer, your ideal customer, your target market, your target audience — or your perfect-ideal-target-customer-avatar — what you’re looking for is a customer who fits the description we came up with above:
“My ideal customer deeply feels the need for a solution to their problem — and they can afford to pay for it.”
One of the easiest ways to understand your new target audience is to pinpoint how they differ from your current audience — the one you’ve been serving up until now.
How is your new target audience different than your existing audience?
- Have they had this problem for more or less time than your current customer?
- Are they more or less familiar with the benefits your solution offers?
- Do they have more or less money to spend on a solution?
If you’ve never spent time identifying your ideal customer, this might be a good time to do that. My Ideal Customer Guide is a small investment that will give you BIG clarity around who your ideal customer is and how you can reach them.
How to attract your new ideal customer
First off, let’s answer to the most-common question I hear around this, which is, “Do I need to build a new website for my new customer?”
Probably not.
Unless your new business is radically different from your existing one, or your existing business serves a target audience that is the antithesis to the customer you want to serve, you can probably pivot your branding — rather than building a new brand from scratch.
It’s a matter of re-orienting your verbal brand and your visual brand so your new target customer recognizes themselves.
And it’s a matter of re-focusing your content marketing and ongoing communication like email marketing toward this new customer.
If you’re ready to focus on a new target audience and grow your online business, I have something for you.
Get your free resource: Revenue Revolution
Revenue Revolution is Your Guide to Large-Scale Revenue from a Small-Scale Audience. Ready for real online business success? Register below:
Here’s what you get:
- A simple offer creation and testing process
- A tool to show you how you can boost your profits FAST
- A template to create an “Expert Statement” to clearly describe your expertise — and build your authority
Revenue Revolution will help you focus on the right target audience — people who are happy to pay you for your expertise and the transformation you provide.
Need more help growing your online business?
One of the reasons I chose today’s topic is that over time, my own business has evolved.
In the early days, when this site was called BIG Brand System, my content attracted people who wanted to “DIY” their branding. There are still many, many resources here to help people do that.
But more recently, I’ve noticed an evolution in my audience. Many of you are way beyond the “DIY” phase. You’re running a business that is going at full speed — and you may be struggling to manage your growth and keep everything on track.
If you’re ready to get help, learn more about my Offer Accelerator program.
