Touching Your Target Market

It’s often said that customers and prospects need touched by your marketing, 6-8 times, to get them into purchase readiness mode. That means when and if they need/want your product or service, they will think of you (and maybe choose you for their purchase), if they've been touched by your marketing 6-8 times.

This touching that we speak of can take many forms as mentioned above. There are even many more forms it can take. You probably have heard talk of a multi-channel marketing program. These forms are the channels discussed in that forum.

Another consideration in this effort is personalization. This can be done with names, brands and images. Using variable data can make this happen en masse in a very targeted way.  This really is a “wow” component to touching your target market. At the end of the day, your goal as a marketer is to motivate customers and prospects to take action.

While we are at it here, don't forget to specifically tell your prospects what that action is that you want them to take. Do not leave it to chance that they know. We call these “calls to action.” You might just say, “Call us, today,” or maybe, “Stop by our place of business for a personal consultation.” Sometimes asking customers to visit your website, send in for information or even enter a contest can be effective calls to action.

Remember to touch your target market, personalize where you can and tell them what you want them to do as a result of your marketing. Not a lot of rocket science here; its common sense but common sense is not necessarily common practice. Consult with an expert to make all of this part of your marketing planning.