The concept of targeted advertising is to have the ideal consumer in mind, equipped with as much knowledge and insight into that consumer as you can be, and use that understanding to reach and resonate with them. As Corporate Business Coach Rasheed Ogunlaru said, "Until you understand your customers — deeply and genuinely — you cannot truly serve them." And that's what a targeted advertising campaign does.
To give you more perspective, here are ways to pinpoint a target audience for advertising campaigns and the top benefits of targeted advertising that you should consider.
When you're confident you have enough insight, it's time to set up a campaign to show users ads based on their data/demographics. You'll want to advertise on the platforms most relevant to your brand and audience.
Data is collected from different sources — the most common being tracking cookies (i.e., a cookie with the ability to track visitors across multiple sites). However, marketing with tracking cookies is about to change when Google removes them in 2024. Another source of info is search engine data, which can gather data on user behavior through everything from location and online 'fingerprints' to search and click-through histories.
It's also common for advertising platforms to get data from social media profiles to help establish demographics and other traits. This data can be useful when targeting and retargeting your target audience.
Most popularly, brands use targeted ads to show consumers the products they've looked at before. This can be a great way to encourage a sale among a consumer who is genuinely interested but still deciding. The extra push could be the deciding factor. In fact, studies show retargeting has increased eCommerce sales by an average of 20% for many companies while reducing cart abandonment by at least 6.5%.
Despite how nice it would be, Seth Godin's saying that "everyone is not your customer" couldn't be more accurate in today's market. It's also an important reminder to have on hand while implementing ad targeting into your marketing. There are six types of targeted advertising you can segment your customers to narrow down your ideal customer.
A great example is local search ads on Google for inquiries related to you and your solutions. This would also be a good time to mention the importance of a free Google My Business profile with how to contact your business, hours of operation, reviews, ratings, a brief overview of who you are, and a link to your website.
The more you know about your consumers, the better your brand will be positioned to solve their problems and align your business with their goals, expectations, values, and beliefs.
Aside from catering to consumer needs better than ever before, the most important benefits of targeted advertising include:
McClatchy knows consumers inside and out. We have decades of experience and expertise in marketing strategies that get results. While reaching the right consumers is often the biggest challenge for brands, there's no greater challenge than resonating with them in a way that shows you truly understand them, what they need from you, and how you can continue to add value to their lives. We can do that and more with our many solutions. Moreover, you’ll get access to McClatchy’s total audience reach, both locally and nationally, so you can truly pinpoint the consumers you need.