Attending networking events costs money that comes from your marketing budget.  As a business owner, you want to maximize your return on that investment. So now I want to teach you how defining a target market helps you achieve this.

To get the most out of your networking efforts, you need to be able to define your target market into specific niches.  Then you need to transfer that information to your referral partners so they know whom to introduce you to.  This is a relatively simple concept, right? But many business owners fail to see the value in defining a target market and continually market themselves to, say, someone who takes holidays, or anyone who needs insurance, or business owners who need a website.  I don’t mean to burst your bubble, but these examples are too large for the average person to conceive. Additionally, all the little niche groups within these examples respond to different pressures in life so marketing to all of them in the same fashion is likely to yield low conversion rates and that wastes your marketing budget.  When you spend money on marketing, you want the highest level of return possible. By defining your target market and specifically talking to them as though they are the only people in the room, you’ll make that happen. Why?

*Because it makes them feel important.  
*It makes them feel like you’re talking to them and them alone.  
*It lets them know you understand their issues.  
*Importantly, it makes them see you can solve their specific problems.  

Let’s face it, if you’re trying to appeal to everyone, then you must communicate in generalities and this misses a vital piece of the puzzle – general communications don’t create high levels of engagement and that means your message is lost in the noise.  Instead of connecting with your message, people think it doesn’t apply to them. So be specific and cut through the noise.