HOW DO I TARGET THE RIGHT MEDIA

Firstly, let me say you for wanting to get your media right. It’s an absolute madness to embark on any kind of PR campaign if you really don’t know how to reach your target audience, as you will end up throwing lots of effort in all the wrong places.
First off you need to be really clear about who you are trying to reach. You say ‘your customers’ but I urge everyone to be certain about who that is. What makes them tick? How old are they? Do they have kids? How far are they likely to travel to come to your boutique? What socio-economic group are they in? What other complementary products/services do your best customers buy? Who else influences them?
It’s only by garnering this kind of information and really getting under the skin of your target audience that you can identify the best way to reach and attract them to your business.
Targeting the right media
Having got really clear about who your audience is, you can now look at how your target audience gets their information. Here’s how…
• At the point of sale ask people to answer a quick question about their media habits. This can be incentivised – perhaps putting everyone into a draw to win a great handbag or piece of jewellery – or perhaps a voucher to use in your boutique. When you do this ask for their email and home address so you can start building a database too.
• You say you have been operating for six months – if you already have a database of customers, conduct a survey among them or have a customer feedback form (this is good practice anyway). Include a question about what they read, listen to, and don’t forget to ask if they use social media (Twitter, Facebook and YouTube).
• Conduct some desk research looking for your customers on Facebook and Twitter – what percentage of your customers use either or both of these? You could be really surprised at how important these social media channels are for your business.