Copywriting – you can think of it like your salesperson in print. And just like any good salesperson knows how to appeal to the emotions of who they’re talking to, your copy should too.
Needs, desires, spending habits, hobbies, location, pain points – the more you know about your target audience, the more persuasive your copywriting will be. And we all know what persuasive means in a social media-driven world *ahem* 💸 influence💸.
But how should one actually conduct target audience research? What mediums should you use? And what questions should you be asking?
Read on to find out.
What Is Target Audience Research?
Target audience research is basically the process of getting to know your ideal customer better. It can range from simple data like where they live, to discovering more intimate pain points, like how they feel insecure being so new to yoga. Showing that you understand them, not just as a customer, but as a real person with real problems and desires, will equip you to compelling copy that converts.
How to Conduct Target Audience Research for Copywriting
We’re living in the golden age of communications and data right now, and you can use that to harvest as much information about your customers as possible. Here are a few ways you can start conducting target audience research:
Use Google Analytics
If your website is up and running and bringing in traffic, Google Analytics can help you better understand your audience demographics. You can see the age, gender, and geographic location of your visitors, as well as the pages they visit and how long they tend to stay on your site. Seeing how they behave on your site can also help you understand if particular pages are converting well, or not converting at all, and optimise your copy where appropriate.
It might seem like basic information, but even a slight oversight on simple demographics like this can greatly hinder your business’ future success. If you aren’t targeting the right people today, your competitor will be tomorrow!
Conduct Surveys
Yes, surveys are still alive and well, and still very good at capturing data! You can use free tools like SurveyMonkey or Google Forms to create and send out surveys to your mailing list or followers.
Pro tip: give your customers an actual incentive to complete the survey, like VIP early access, a one-month free trial, or a discount code!
Conduct Interviews:
A more in-depth way to do target audience research, you can reach out to your followers or potential partners to propose an interview. To make it worth their while, you can give them a shout-out, a freebie, or do a write-up about the interview to help boost their profile. Or, you know, just pay them for their time.
Polls, Polls, Polls!
Polls are one of the best ways to gather information about audiences, yet they’re one of the most underappreciated and underused. With just a simple click of a button, your customer can tell you whether they want to see ‘this or that’, or how they really feel about a dividing issue.
Social media polls are especially easy to create, share, and interact with, and have huge potential to go viral, see:
- Is the dress white and gold or black and blue?
- Are there more wheels or doors in the world?
- Do you hear Yanny or Laurel?
Most people have very strong opinions and will give you their twopence in the comments, often sharing useful information you didn’t ask for in the first place.
(I still refuse to believe it’s black and blue)
Social Media
We’re all out here sharing our lives on social media. Who do you follow? What kind of videos are on your ‘for you’ page? Which veggie restaurant did you go to for brunch yesterday? All that data is being harvested and shared to give you the convenient experience of targeted ads, so why aren’t you using it for your business?
Social media can also provide you with extremely valuable insights into customer perception of your brand. Don’t wait for people to actively reach out to you or leave you a review – they’ll talk to their friends or followers before they do that. Track conversations and mentions using a tool like SproutSocial. You can leverage that same data when writing copy to address pain points and mitigate objections.
Competitor Research
A big part of audience research is understanding how your competitors are serving – or not – serving them. Track the mentions of your competitors on social media, and see what people are commenting on their posts. Is there a gap in the market that you could fill to win those customers instead? It’s not spying – it’s *target audience research*.
7 Questions to Ask When Conducting Audience Research
When conducting audience research you want to get as much detail about your potential customers as possible. Here are 7 questions you should aim to answer and how they can help your copywriting;
1. What is their age, gender, income, level of education, etc?
This will play a major role in the tone and language used in your copy. Different age groups may respond differently to certain types of messaging, while different genders may have various priorities or concerns.
2. Where do they live and work?
This is especially important for local businesses. Aside from leveraging the data for local SEO, you can understand if there are regional differences in the way your target audience speaks or behaves.
3. What are their interests and hobbies?
Understanding what your audience is passionate about can help you position your product/service in a way that genuinely resonates with them and builds rapport.
4. What are their pain points or challenges?
Show that you understand them, and try to offer a solution in the form of your product/service. Don’t be afraid to get specific!
If you’re a business founder and genuinely love the product/service you’re selling, your pre-business self is probably very similar to your target audience. You’ll love talking about how your self-made solution solved your problems, and your customers will love it too. It’s what makes the best Dragon’s Den pitches so good!
5. What are their preferred communication channels?
You don’t want to waste time, energy, or money creating content they won’t see, do you?
6. What are their purchasing habits?
This is crucial in creating calls to action, sales funnels, and landing pages that actually convert. Understanding your audience’s purchasing habits will also help you tailor your content to what matters most to them, whether it be price point or brand reputation.
7. How do they feel about your industry?
Address their concerns, provide a solution, and avoid the inadvertent use of language or tone that might put them off.
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If you’re struggling to connect with and convert your target audience, take the time to conduct thorough audience research. We promise you won’t regret it!
You can also get in touch with a copywriting agency – like us – that can help you take that vital customer data and turn it into words your audience can’t resist. Get in touch with us to find out more.