Target group mystery: How do you prevent your media budget from fizzling out without any effect?

If the wrong target group is chosen, the rest of the media planning is usually a waste. But why does the idea of a target group often deviate so much from reality? What are the dangers of targeting that is too "narrow" or too "broad"? Where and when do personas make sense or just nonsense? And what does brand growth have to do with the target group?

If you ask marketing decision-makers which target group they want to address, the answers are often vague. The crux of the matter is that there is often an ideal image of the target group in corporate marketing and unfortunately this desired target group does not always correspond to reality.

"Everyone could be my potential customer" is another frequently heard statement. And this is where the slippery slope begins: Many do not dare to narrow down this circle in a meaningful way, to focus and to realistically classify their market potential. Because if the target group is unrealistic or incorrectly defined, the subsequent channel selection - and therefore the hard-earned media money - is also "for the garbage can".

Incorrect targeting

Agencies are often confronted with the fact that target groups are either defined too narrowly or too broadly in the briefing. Too narrow is usually not good, as I am then always "fishing in the same pond" in media planning. This is a typical phenomenon in performance marketing, for example. Too broad is usually not good either, as the target group then becomes very unspecific, undifferentiated and no longer tangible - and consequently also the subsequent choice of media and environment.

For media planners, it is essential to learn as much as possible about the target group. Analyses, soft factors, but also surprising consumer insights can be very useful. Common sense often helps too. The more questions you ask and the better you listen, the closer you get to the "secret" of your target group - just like in real life. Gaining an insight into your target group that is new - or that none of your competitors have - can be responsible for your campaign being more successful than the average.

Useful: personas and customer journeys

And what about "personas"? A persona is a fictitious but typical representative of the target group and helps to make it more tangible and emotionally accessible beyond the marketing jargon. What moves them, how do they live, what is important to them, how do they consume, where do they get information? Personas can help to make communication more effective and the target group more understandable for sales, for example. My tip here is: as few as possible, as many as necessary! Otherwise there is a great risk of getting bogged down. As we all know, strategy always means "delete, omit, persevere".

Customer journeys - often referred to as "mapping" - can also be useful. This involves analyzing in detail which touchpoints people come into contact with during the purchasing process and which are particularly relevant or critical. Once you have created these - you can break them down to so-called "micro-moments" - you can sometimes discover completely new and surprising touchpoints. These may not have been on your radar before, but can definitely make a competitive difference.

In the continuation of the multi-part "How To" series our Whitepaper No. 2 "Target group" further tips for initiating relationships and for more successful communication.

After holding various positions at media and creative agencies and as head of marketing at an outdoor advertising company, he took over Oliver Schönfeld took up the position of Managing Director at TWmedia in Basel in 2018. He has acquired his knowledge through a great deal of curiosity, many years of experience and by studying marketing and psychology on the windy Baltic coast and in vibrant Manchester.

• You can find the first article by Oliver Schönfeld on the "Strategic process" white paper here.