Tag: target audience

Using Stats to Identify a Target Market

Review your website statistics and use the results to identify potential target audiences for new products and revenue.

Expand your market
Expand your markets

When you are creating your business plan and strategy you start by identifying your target audiences and what they need and how you provide something that meets that need.

After you have had your website up for a while – you might find that there are other people who are finding your website that may be outside of your original idea of a target audience.  Reviewing your website statistics may give some clues and ideas of other potential markets that you could tap into.

Example:

As a nonprofit of small business you may directly serve people in a specific geographic location.  Perhaps you provide training or consulting as part of your services.

Website Statistics - Map of Recent Visitors
Website Statistics - Map of Recent Visitors - view from Statcounter.com

You notice in your website statistics that you have visitors coming to your website from other parts of the country – or even internationally.  Although you don’t know WHO these people are – look at the path they follow and what pages of the website they look at.  This will give you some idea of their interest.  Also you may be able to tell where they came from (link from another website) or what key words they used in a search.

What could you offer these people?  Would you be able to charge for it?  Would it be appropriate for your mission? Would it potentially add value to your organization profile – and also of use to your own clients and affiliates?

You may want to consider creating “Information Products” that would meet the needs of this potential target audience.  Here are a few suggestions:

  • Webinars on specific topics.  These could be available free or for a fee.  With many webinar softwares it is possible to record the session, and make them available on your website of via a link.  You could also be building a library of these over time and offer on DVD.
  • eBooks. An eBook is readily accessible to download for free or by purchase.  Review the current publications that you have now – or think of topics that lend themselves to a book, whitepaper, or short tutorial that would be useful to this potential market.
  • Printed Books.  Investigate publishing a printed book using a self publishing firm.
  • Video. Videos are increasingly popular as a means for delivering training and tutorials and providing information to your target audiences.  If you are charging a fee for video views the videos could be in a subscription / members area.

As with any new product or service you will need to do your research, decide on the content, method and resources needed in order to carry this out.

Here are a few links to get you started. These are sources that I have used after researching and found they offer good value

  • Webinars – GVO Conference enables you to put on a webinar, record it and store the link to use.  It is a good way to start as there are good tutorials on how to begin and help getting setup.
  • eBooks  and Printed Books – LULU.Com gives you the means to publish eBooks and printed publications.
  • Videos – Screenr.Com has a free version that you can use to create tutorial. YouTube has a basic editor for video.

Denise Davies is an Internet and media consultant.  She works with nonprofit organizations and small businesses to maximize their effective use of the Internet to build their organization and achieve their objectives.  If you have questions or would like to learn more contact through the contact form

Tips for Nonprofits To Build Your List

Email MarketingA key component of success in getting the word out about your nonprofit is to build up the list of people that are interested and want to be informed.

Who should be on your list?

Your list includes current clients, potential clients, volunteers and potential volunteers, donors and potential donors, sponsors and potential sponsors, alliance partners, other organizations working with similar missions or for the same type of clients and your own employees, board members, people who attend your classes and seminars, media contacts etc.

Segmenting your list

Look at the categories above and review the current status of your organization.  Do you currently collect the contact information from each of these types of contacts?  What form is the list in now?  Are you able to use it effectively to target communications to either all or specific interest groups?  For example, are you able to contact just people who are volunteers?

Building your list

Building your list should be a regular ongoing activity. It involves both online and offline activities.

ONLINE TIPS

  • Add a “Signup for newsletter” on the website.
  • Add a useful article or report and then a  “Download Article” and ask for an email address and send the link to the article to that address
  • Add a link on your email signature file “Sign up for newsletter”
  • Add various “Calls to Action” on your website – and ask people if you can add them to your newsletter list.  e.g. “Become involved”, Donate, “How can I help”, “Ask a Question”
  • Add a “Signup for email newsletter” on your Facebook Page
  • Hold an online webinar and get contact information for registration

OFFLINE TIPS

  • Have a signup sheet at your seminars, classes and events
  • Ask your clients, affiliates, partner organizations, board members, volunteers, for their email address
  • Hold a raffle or contest and include the email address to inform the winner – ask for permission to put them on your list
  • Have sign up sheets or business card bowls at conferences, and alliance partner locations

For more details on how to build your list and please send me a request for a special report from Constant Contact.  Eckova Consulting is a Constant Contact Solution Provider and offers services on list building, list management, email newsletter design and maintenance, and a full range of internet consulting services for nonprofits.   Constant Contact provides the tools to  implement all of the suggestions to build your list.

See more details:

Denise Davies works with nonprofits and small business to provide effective internet strategies.  Denise is a Certified Constant Contact affiliate and Solution Provider.

Why should your organization be on Facebook?

Facebook has become a powerful business tool for organizations. Learn how to get started.

I get this question a lot – “Should my organization be on Facebook?”  or “How do I get my organization on Facebook”.

Facebook has really developed into a business and networking tool.  Originally it was people talking to their friends and families, posting their pictures and leaving comments on their thoughts and activities.

Now however it has a demographic change where people of all ages are using it and businesses and organizations are learning how to use this venue as a way to connect with people of similar interests, provide information, network, put on events and build relationships.

The success and huge interest for example during

Here are some statistics from FaceBook.  It now has (as of Jan 23, 2009)

  • More than 150 million active users
  • More than half of Facebook users are outside of college
  • The fastest growing demographic is those 30 years old and older
  • The average user has 100 friends on the site
  • More than 3 billion minutes are spent on Facebook each day (worldwide)
  • More than 13 million users update their statuses at least once each day
  • More than 3 million users become fans of Pages each day
These are numbers that cannot be ignored.  There is huge potential to interact with the people that are in your interest area.
If you haven’t already done so – setup a Facebook account and put in your basic profile information.   Then click on GROUPS – it is on the right side in the Applications Section.   Do a search for something in your interest area and browse through the available groups and join a few.

For more information on using Facebook and other Internet tips join the Aleph Consulting Facebook Group by clicking on this link.

I will be announcing a teleseminar to the group that goes into more detail on how to use Facebook for your organization.   See you on Facebook 🙂

Denise Davies's Facebook profile