The 4 target marketing strategies that can be explored are: niche marketing, mass marketing, relationship marketing and personalised marketing. Target marketing creates the opportunity for you to effectively reach your target and current customers while engaging and building relationships with them.
The heart of a successful marketing strategy, is to connect, engage, build long-term relationships and to deliver the best customer experience ever! The best customer experience will certainly enable you to dominate the marketplace and build a sustainable business.
These 4 target marketing strategies can definitely pave the way for your brand and the strategies you select depends on who you’re targeting and the type of product/service you’re offering.
Let’s get straight into each strategy.
1. Niche Marketing is the type of marketing strategy that sets the way for you to stand out and dominate your niche! It involves targeting one or more segments of the market with specific needs and preferences that are not being fulfilled by existing brands in the market.
The targeted segments can be divided into one or more niches where you can align your products/services and brand messages with the needs and preferences of a particular niche.
Niche marketing is one of the 4 target marketing strategies that carves out the opportunity to truly cater to a specific group of individuals.
Let’s take a look at the coffee house industry for example. In my home country of Trinidad and Tobago, the coffee house giants that currently dominate the market are Rituals Coffee House (a local brand) and Starbucks Coffee.
These coffee houses are quite great and have been doing very well. However; there’s a niche market that prefers: coffee houses that are more secluded and ideal for working and studying, customised coffees made from freshly roasted premium coffee beans, lattes and teas with latte art accompanied with plant based milk options.
As these options are not available at Rituals and Starbucks; my favourite coffee house: 5 AM Club Coffee, delivers all of these preferences to its niche market. Additionally, it's fairly secluded, relatively quiet and provides a chill and intimate coffee house atmosphere. You feel like you're in whole different world!
This is definitely one of the ideal and interesting ways to position your brand as unique and valuable in the eyes of your niche market and stand out competitively.
It’s one of the 4 target marketing strategies that can help build brand loyalty and identify plus fill any gaps within the market by meeting the needs of a specific target market group.
2. Mass Marketing is a form of marketing strategy that appeals to a wide audience that involves marketing a standardised product and message. This type of marketing strategy can only work for essential products/services that are designed to meet the required basic needs of customers.
Essential products/services consist of basic food items, cooking gas, gas for vehicles plus water and clothing for example.
Mass marketing strategy is one of the 4 target marketing strategies that requires no uniqueness as it aims to meet a common need. It’s only effective if businesses have the resources to execute a mass production of the products/services.
3. Relationship Marketing refers to building and establishing relationships with customers through the use of personalised communication as well as providing value.
It’s a great marketing strategy to implement because it generates customer loyalty and repeat purchases which is certainly a great win for any business. It’s basically the key ingredient for business success!
Relationship marketing is one of the 4 target marketing strategies that can build engagement by consistently ensuring that your customers’ needs and preferences are met.
Engagement can be achieved through the creation of high quality content on various channels such as videos, social media and websites for example and requesting customer feedback. Additionally, it is an excellent way to connect with your target customers/audience as it involves going way and above for them.
Personalised messages can be executed in the form of email marketing consisting of product/service recommendations based on your customers’ past purchases and browsing history on your website.
It’s a smart way to show that you’re committed to meeting the needs of your customers which in turn enhances the customer experience!
Relationship marketing is a great element of the 4 target marketing strategies because it can even be broken up into: local and one-to-one marketing.
Local marketing or Local Store Marketing involves catering to the specific needs of a group of customers by providing products/services to meet their needs and requirements. One-to-One Marketing involves providing products/services to meet the needs of an individual customer.
Relationship marketing helps to build trust, loyalty, engagement and long-term customer relationships.
4. Personalised Marketing is a form of marketing strategy that involves directly communicating with your customers using online and offline channels such as mail, email, social media and newsletters.
It’s another great element of the 4 target marketing strategies and it’s quite interconnected with Relationship Marketing.
Personalised marketing involves creating personalised messages based on data reflecting customers’ buying and even web browsing history. As such, personalised messages include product recommendations, special offers, sales or product promotions that are tailored to your customers’ needs and interests.
It encourages repeat purchases which leads to more sales! I believe that this strategy is worth exploring because it involves meeting and exceeding your customers’ needs and expectations. It’s the perfect way for your products/services to appeal to a certain group of customers.
Niche marketing, mass marketing, relationship marketing and personalised marketing are the 4 target marketing strategies that can be explored when building your business.
The best marketing strategy/strategies you choose will depend on the type and nature of your products/services together with your target market. When you choose the marketing strategies that are ideal for your business, always keep in mind to over deliver on value and customer experience.
Delivering value and providing the ideal customer experience will certainly enable your business to thrive!