Studying consumer behavior is important to draw up a customer profile, define the market strategy and establish what the target of a marketing campaign will be.
Target is a term from the English language that is not part of the dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy ( RAE ). However, it is usually used in our language with reference to an objective , a goal or a target .
The notion is frequently used in marketing and advertising . In this context, the target is the recipient that a service or product and its corresponding dissemination campaigns aim to reach.
The target, result of a market study
It is important to mention that the target is an ideal construction that is developed from market studies. Suppose a beer manufacturer wants to launch a new non-alcoholic variety. After carrying out an analysis of the market and consumer tastes, the company determines that the target of the product will be women between 30 and 50 years old. This means that the new non-alcoholic beer is more likely to interest this group of society, and that advertising will be aimed at captivating this social sector.
Determining the target, also called the target market or objective market , is very important to optimize resources. If a company wants to impose a new candy, it will most likely try to attract the attention of children since they are the traditional target of this type of product. If this issue is not taken into account, you may invest in advertising that does not even reach the potential consumers of the candy.
Big data can help define the target.
The importance of its definition
Defining the target is very important for any company as it allows it to direct its efforts. After an analysis of market data and your own proposal, you can establish segmentation and target a particular market niche.
The scope of marketing campaigns, thus, must take this differentiation into account. Thinking about an ideal client, the aim is to have an impact on a specific market segment and achieve a positioning that allows us to prevail over the competition.
With the target defined, and taking into account the satisfaction of the desires of the client you aspire to conquer, it is more likely that you will be able to gain market share . The company's strategic planning must also consider strengthening a brand identity that addresses these issues.
The promotion of a product through digital advertising has to be aimed at the specific target.
Estimation errors when establishing the target
One of the main defects of market studies and, consequently, of target estimation, is the interference produced by prejudices , among which those associated with machismo always stand out. Among the most common examples of this phenomenon are the associations of sports with men, kitchen utensils with women, and toys with children; You only have to look at the real world for a second to find athletic women, men who love cooking, and adults who invest their entire salaries in toys.
Despite the many and very impressive advances in technology, human beings have not evolved enough socially to be in balance, and that is why modern life is so difficult and stressful. This is evident, for example, every time a multinational company that invoices billions a year asks in its surveys whether a certain product attracts more male or female audiences ; Behind the innocence of these two terms lies the annulment of millions of people, since their meaning in this context is "heterosexual men or women."
Search for a new segment
The search for the target for a product or service is not always optimal, but this does not prevent large companies from continuing to get rich; However, if everyone implemented an open vision adapted to the current times, the benefits would be many and for everyone. One of the factors that is slowly collaborating with a change for the better is the Internet, since it gives the public the possibility of raising their voice. Through social networks, anyone who feels excluded from an advertising campaign, or who finds its content offensive, can report it without much effort.
On the other side of the spectrum are those few companies that are committed to a revolution through products or services that aim at an unexpected target , or that "create" a new target , placing people who until then had never met in the same group. they had found in an advertising campaign .
Target, finally, is the name of an American department store chain , a stadium in Minneapolis and a town in France .