Target market

In the field of advertising, the anglicisms target, target group and target market, are used as synonyms to designate the ideal recipient of a certain campaign, product or service.

However, in the marketing environment, the target market designates the entire preferential space where supply and demand converge for the exchange of goods and services. It includes among its most important elements the geographical reach, the distribution channels, the categories of traded products, the repertoire of direct and indirect competitors, the terms of trade, and the representatives of the demand among which are influencers, prospective buyers and also the target group. So the meaning of marketing for the term is substantially broader and should not be confused with that used for advertising purposes.

The target group or target group or objective market, is the segment of demand to which a product is directed, be it a good or a service. Initially, it is defined based on demographic criteria such as age, gender and socioeconomic variables.

Delimitation of a target market for advertising purposes

Knowing the attitudes of a target market towards campaigns and different media makes it easier to predict results and come up with the right message to optimize return on investment. Analyzing the consumer behavior of a specific target is very important when deciding on a type of promotion.

When defining the objective, it is necessary to clarify the demographic or sociographic variables. Once the target market has been defined, its characteristics are analyzed to try to find out what moves them to act as they do and, therefore, what moves them to purchase.

There are “three steps” to establishing target markets:

• market segmentation.
• selection of the target market.
• positioning of the product.

Strategies to narrow down a target market are influenced by:

• the maturity of the market.
• the diversity of preferences and needs of consumers.
• the size and geographical scope of the company that sponsors the campaign.
• the strength of competition or the economy.
• the volume of sales required to produce profits.

Target Market Utility

In the field of advertising, once you have a specific target market defined and limited, the most effective and efficient is the use of targeted media to get the message to that market.

In the field of marketing, the appropriate definition of the target group is a key element for the definition of the marketing strategy, since it works as an essential complement to properly configure the value proposition of the brand or company. The advertising strategy increases its effectiveness by making use of the value proposition and the target group, not only due to the adequate selection of communication media, but also by achieving more precise brand symbolizations and more relevant communication vehicles.

Not knowing the target market leads to decisions with a high risk of failure, especially when using strategies in traditional or mass media where costs are high and returns are not necessarily guaranteed.

Variables that define an advertising target

The target audience is one of the main points of the advertising briefing. An advertising campaign and its creativity are aimed at the target market. In order to locate where the target audience is actually located, studies are carried out that indicate the hard and soft variables as well as the exact description of the target market to which the product is directed. Normally, their most notable characteristics are grouped together:

• Socio-economic level (SEN):
  • Very low.
  • Low-low.
  • Get down.
  • Lower-Media.
  • Half.
  • Half-high.
  • Alta.
  • High-high.
  • Very high.
• Sex:
  • Women.
  • Men.
• Age:
  • 0-3 years.
  • 3-5 years.
  • 5-10 years.
  • 10-14 years.
  • 14-16 years.
  • 17-19 years.
  • 20-23 years.
  • 23-25 years.
  • 25-35 years.
  • 35-45 years.
  • 45-55 years.
  • 55-65 years.
  • 65 on.
• Occupation:
  • You love home.
  • Professionals on behalf of others.
  • Self-employed professionals.
  • Unemployed.
  • Directors.
  • Intermediate charges.
  • Etc.
• Habits:
  • Consumption.
  • Shopping.
  • From exposure to media and advertising.
• Motivations.
• Cultural level.
• Religion.

New trends

Market tool

Historically, the target markets were considered groups of individuals, who, using or resorting to various segmentation techniques, were grouped by age, gender, social groups, etc.

Currently, this conception is giving way to new trends in terms of definition. Markets are considered sets or groups of "buyer profiles" or "potential buyers", something closer to human behavior. This arises from the fact that people can contain several profiles of buyers, for example, conditioned by the means they use to make a purchase or the decision-making of this, as human beings they can be affected by the environment.