Know how your target market is accessing your website?

Reaching your target market and ensuring that the recipients respond positively is arguably the key to success in any business.  Over the years many businesses have developed tried and tested ways to reach their customer base. With what appears to be daily changes in technology it is important that your business stays up to date in how it reaches customers. This ensures that not only do you retain and grow your customer base, you don’t get left for dust by your tech-savvy competitors. How long ago did you look at whether these tried and tested approaches are still working effectively for your business?

We’ve all seen reports of the decline of the typical British high street. It is a fact that shopping habits have changed dramatically, so businesses are seeing a decline in footfall in their high street premises. You may be reading this and thinking, “no new information there” and “I’m fine, my business has an online presence!”  And, to a certain extent, you’re right, this trend is nothing new. What has changed is the fact that simply having a website is no longer sufficient. You need to fully consider how your target market approaches not only how they buy products and services, but also how they approach digital media in general. Do you know how your target market is accessing your website?

In an OfCom report¹ of adults and media in 2017, it was shown that 98% of 16-24 years olds, 96% of 45-54 year olds and 88% of UK adults total are online. Of these adults, 4 out of 5 say that the internet makes life easier for them.  And, 3 out of 5 say that the internet inspires them to try new things. 62% say that the advantages of online activity outweigh the disadvantages. The average adult in the UK spends a total of a day a week online. Since a similar report in 2016, there has been no increase in the amount of time spent online.

70% of adults are using smartphones to go online

However, the locations where this online activity is taking place are now more diverse.  It’s not just at home or school anymore. Smartphones are now more popular for going online than the desktop. 70% of adults are more likely to use a smartphone to go online. These are mainly people in higher socio-economic groups between the age of 35-54. Smartphones are not just being used for online purchases, but as substitutes for tickets and boarding passes. The number of people using a Smartphone for ticket entry on a weekly basis has doubled from 2016 to 2017.

Tips on reaching your target market

Keeping your business tech-current is therefore essential as online accessing and attitudes to the internet are evolving year on year.  How can you modify your online approach accordingly? As a starting point, take these 3 simple steps and think #mobilegeddon!

• Make sure your website is responsive so that it will adapt to whatever device is in use. It’s no good having an all-singing, all-dancing website that works perfectly for desktop but isn’t mobile friendly. In 2015 Google decided that if a website is not mobile friendly, it will not rank in the search engine results page. Make sure your website is a fast loader. Make it easily accessible on mobile devices. Ensure it is formatted for easy mobile use – no side-to-side scrolling, please!
• When e-mail marketing, optimise the e-mails for mobile devices.
• Ensure you remain highly visible on social media platforms.  This means that those online smartphone browsers can see that you are a brand or business that they can easily follow and engage with.

Leave it to the experts…

So, it’s easy, right?  To thrive, you simply need to keep up with all the changes in tech and you’ll easily keep your target market on board.  In reality, you’re busy with the nitty-gritty of running the business. You don’t always have the luxury of extra time to spend researching the latest trends in marketing to allow the business to thrive. Fortunately, help is at hand!  Staying ahead of marketing trends is the bread and butter of WDA’s business. We’ve got decades of experience in analysing a business and being able to direct its brand and its marketing strategy to its optimal position. If you feel your business needs help to fully reach all online users in your target market, contact [email protected].  We’re ready to help you go mobile and go from strength to strength.

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