Using digital for effective targeted marketing

Targeted marketing can traditionally be done in a few ways:

• Geographically (e.g. billboards, mail drops)
• By interest (e.g. at sports’ games, events)
• Or by piggybacking someone else’s target market (e.g. niche magazine ad).

While there’s nothing wrong with these methods, the cost per customer can be high. It’s expensive to put an ad out to so many people, especially if only a handful is actually interested.

These methods will work when your product doesn’t have a specific market but instead could be just about anyone. For example, everyone needs toothpaste. Advertising in an area near a supermarket is guaranteed to reach the people that need to buy toothpaste. But that ad might be targeted at women, in which case the placement might be wasted on all the men and children that also walk past.

Targeting by interest can also be effective. If you’ve ever been to a football game, you’re sure to have seen a beer ad or two. Or maybe two hundred. Again, this can be effective, but it’s excluding a considerable audience that doesn’t like the sport as well as being wasted on those that can’t stand the taste of beer.

Advertising in a magazine has the same issues as choosing an event. Yes, you’ll reach the people you know are also interested in fashion or gaming or whatever else the topic might be, but does that interest always overlap with your product?

But there’s a better way.

Digital marketing allows you to target an individual customer based on the data you’ve collected about them.
Let’s say you’re trying to sell a new plastic-free children’s toy to mothers. You already have a database of customers that have purchased from you in the past—you can retarget them quite easily. You can also jump on social media and target an ad specifically at women who like or follow pages about childcare, raising children, motherhood or something similar. You can find women who are also interested in environmental issues and stopping plastic.

Now every cent you spend on this marketing campaign will be spent on precisely who you want to see your ad. Of course, there are going to be others that don’t fit these categories that are also interested in your product. That’s where search advertising comes in. You can be the first thing to pop up when they look into “baby toys”, “children’s toys” or “gifts for children.”

Not only does digital marketing significantly increase your ability to target those you want to thus save you money, but it can also be updated at any time.

Is your ad not performing as well as you expected? Change it!

Want more help with your digital marketing in Melbourne? Speak to us at Zib Digital.