I work everyday with corporate professionals who are looking to leave their jobs and get into the internet marketing industry. Their first question is, “How do I get started?” The next question is, “How do I get prospects coming to me?”
Some have already started their marketing campaign. But they are getting little response.
When people come to me with this problem, I ask them if they have made a target market selection. They must know what audience they are addressing.
For a distributor in a skin care business, is her market everyone who has skin? I don’t think so.
I broke the news to her that by following that approach, she would probably never have much success. She needed to significantly reduce the size of the market she was targeting. Why not go after a large market (all people with skin)? After all, there are many people in the market. Surely, you could find many who are interested in what you have to offer.
A huge market, all people who have skin, is extremely competitive. Even if a person finds your website, why would the prospect ever consider buying from you? Your website looks like all the millions of other websites.
Here is a second major point. If you are addressing a large market, how do you know what they are looking for?
If your products don’t satisfy their needs, they will look elsewhere.
Some may have an interest. But why in the world should they buy from you? Your ad is just like thousands of ads out there.
The prospects in your target market have specific needs. Your website or blog must address those needs, answer their specific questions, and solve their specific problem.
For example, there are many target or niche markets that fall under the overall skin care product umbrella. Listed below are 3 smaller markets. For best results, these should be broken down into much smaller markets.
1. This market has tried many skin care products that have failed to provide the results they are looking for. 2. This market consists of people who have a specific skin condition. They are looking for someone who understands their situation and can solve their problem. 3. This market consists of baby boomers. They are looking for products that can solve their aging skin problem. How do you stand out from all the other anti-aging skin products that are being promoted on the internet?
It’s very important that you make a fairly narrow target market selection. Your marketing approach should be one of providing educational information. This doesn’t mean telling your prospects all that you know. It means answering the questions they have. What does this do for us?
For one thing, a small, targeted niche market will have far less competition than a broader one.
Second, you must determine exactly what your market is looking for.
What are their dreams? What are their questions? What are they searching for on the internet? What problems do that have that need to be solved? Do they lose sleep at night worrying about certain things?
Your marketing is all about addressing these questions, these problems, these wants and needs, and their dreams. How do you find out the deep-seated needs of your target market?
Go where the people in your target market hang out. Find blogs, forums, or message boards related to your niche market. Here you can find out what questions are being asked and those that are not being answered properly. Go online and search for keywords related to your niche market. Find gaps or issues that are not being properly addressed. This research takes time but is very beneficial.
Here’s a quicker way. Talk directly with a prospect in your niche market. Find out the answers to these questions.
Understanding your target market, their needs, and their wants, is critical to success in an internet marketing business. The next step is give them the answers they need.
It’s very important that you provide solutions to your prospects’ problems. This type of educational marketing will attract the prospect to your blog or website.
Here is my suggestion. Make a list of several possible target markets. Then select only one to address first. Hold onto the list of the markets you did not choose. You can very possibly market to those groups later.
Target market selection and research on that market are critical at this point. Determine the unanswered questions and unsolved problems for your market. Then provide these answers and solutions.
After making the proper target market selection, an entrepreneur’s next step is to attract leads online. Scott offers a free report on how to generate free, qualified leads on the internet.
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