In today’s ever-changing world, the need to stay connected with your audience and adapt your messaging and offers is more important than ever. As small businesses, we are constantly competing for the attention of our audience amid the constant bombardment of messages from all different directions.
It should be our goal as business owners to remain in alignment with our audience’s needs and the ability to resonate with them is absolutely essential to our success. This will ensure we’re meeting our audience exactly where they are and providing them with the value they’re looking for.
While many of us are familiar with the basics of audience research such as pain points, desires, fears, and target demographics, there are a few strategies we can implement to connect with our audience on a deeper and more meaningful level.
How being authentic secures your business
Is authenticity overrated? Authenticity gets thrown around and used often in the online digital world but for good reason. With AI growing quicker than ever, authenticity is the heartbeat of a successful business.
While the use of AI can accelerate and streamline many things in business, it cannot replace real human interaction and connection. This is why building a personal brand is such a vital component in business because when you have a strong foundation, there’s no need to fear the growing AI industry.
Because short-form content has grown exponentially over the last few years, audiences are more educated than ever before when it comes to marketing and front-facing sales. It’s not hard for them to decipher between a genuine promotion and a generic, salesy pitch. When you build a business based on trust and an authentic personal brand, you ensure your audience knows you’re only promoting products and services that are valuable to them.
Speak your audience’s language
Your audience may not come to you knowing every term in the book, and that means you can’t speak in jargon they won’t resonate with. Your business could offer the perfect solution for your target audience, but if you’re talking about it in an unapproachable or incomprehensible way, why would they buy? I see this too often in the business world. Two examples that stand out are lawyers and accountants.
Topics like the law and finances can be very overwhelming to business owners because they may not be experts in those fields. Using legal or financial jargon is certainly not meeting their audiences where they are. The verbiage could be too complex and chances are their audience is not full of lawyers or finance professionals.
The same can go for any niche or business. The language you use will depend on your specific audience and how they like to receive information.
Take these questions into consideration:
- How does my audience like to digest information? (short-form video, text, graphics)
- Where are they on their journey?
- Will this resonate with my audience where they currently are?
These simple shifts can help you serve your audience and increase your revenue.
Choose the right channels and platforms
Where and how you connect with your audience matters. Whether you’re connecting through email, social media, or in-person events, choosing the right platforms and channels can rapidly grow your business.
Take the example of email. If your primary channel is email, are you connecting with your audience at times they’re most likely to engage? Audience behavior has shifted in recent years, so staying up to date with their preferences is important.
The same concept applies to social media. What worked in the past might not be effective today. Your audience could have been highly active on one platform and have shifted to another.
Think about the platform, Clubhouse – the walkie-talkie app. During the pandemic, it was highly popular and gave people the ability to connect with each other. But when the app completely fizzled out, those people didn’t just exit social media, they found another platform to connect on.
Keeping up with where your audience is will save you time from creating content on other platforms and help you hone in on the ones that apply to your audience.
Relate to your audience
Building an authentic connection with your audience often begins with finding common ground. If you’re a coach or mentor, chances are you’ve experienced challenges similar to your ideal audience. It’s in these experiences you have the incredible opportunity to foster deeper connections with your audience.
The same concept applies to e-commerce businesses. Connecting with your audience can revolve around the product itself. Sharing how the product has improved your life or how it represents your values gives you a clear opportunity to relate to your audience. People buy from people and using stories is a powerful way to create an emotional connection that drives purchasing decisions.
Actively listen and engage
Sharing your own stories and experiences is essential to growing deeper connections, but if you want to take it a step further, then engaging and actively listening to your audience is the way to go.
We don’t just want to talk at our audiences. We want them to engage with us and in return, we need to engage with them. What does that imply, exactly?
If you have an email, ask your audience a question to encourage a conversation. Open up the door for them to share their experiences, perspectives, and opinions. You can do the same thing on social media through polls, question boxes, and comments.
You can use the data you collect to further tailor your content to your audience, so you’re always meeting them exactly where they are.
About The Author
Rachel Gogos is a multi-passionate entrepreneur with a strong desire to help people by creating strong personal brands and businesses. She’s personally launched dozens of books, e-products, and services; and hundreds of products and services with her clients. She started her career at the United Nations headquarters in New York City, where she helped create the look and feel for the organization’s first website.
Today, in her current role running brandiD, Rachel channels over 15 years of marketing and communications experience into each and every website for brandiD’s clients.
And check out her book, Build Your Brand: The Distinctive Guide to Soul-Based Marketing. It will help you uncover your personal brand.