"Everyone" is not a target audience. The businesses that grow fastest are usually the ones that got specific about who they serve. The tools for getting specific are segmentation (dividing the market) and targeting (choosing which segments to pursue).
What segmentation actually means
Segmentation is grouping your potential customers by shared characteristics so you can speak to each group in a way that resonates. The four classic bases:
- Demographic - age, income, job role, business size
- Geographic - location, urban vs rural, climate
- Behavioural - how they buy, how often, what triggers a purchase
- Psychographic - values, attitudes, lifestyle and motivations
Behavioural and psychographic segments are usually the most powerful, because two people the same age and income can want completely different things.
Targeting: choosing where to fish
Once you have segments, you choose. A useful segment is large enough to be worth it, reachable through some channel, and a genuine fit for what you offer. A segment that is huge but unreachable, or perfect but tiny, may not be worth building a strategy around. Pick the one or two where you can win, not the ten where you might dabble.
Why narrower usually wins
Narrowing your target feels like leaving money on the table, but the opposite is true. A focused audience lets you write sharper messages, choose the right channels, and spend a limited budget where it counts. You can always add segments later; starting broad just dilutes everything.
From segment to person
Segments are still abstractions. The next step is turning your chosen segment into buyer personas - named, described individuals you can picture when you write. That is when segmentation stops being a spreadsheet exercise and starts improving your marketing.
A quick test
If your current marketing would work just as well for a completely different type of customer, it is not targeted enough. Good targeting shows up as messages that make the right people think "this is exactly for me" - and make the wrong people move on, which is fine.
Learn segmentation and targeting on real markets in the Marketing Strategy and Concepts course at London School of Business UK - enquire today.