When building a site or trying to make money online it’s important to know who you are trying to target.  This can be a key element in determining the success of your efforts because different demographics have different ways that they are most effectively approached and catered to.  Everything from design to the topics you write about, should be considered when trying to appeal to a particular audience.

Who is your target audience?

Many times we know exactly the people that we are trying to reach and deliver our message.  If you have been involved with a particular topic or business for some time, you will have a feel for the types of people looking for your products or information.  Other times, we really have no idea of who is searching for what we offer.  However, you can narrow down characteristics of the people you are trying to reach and structure your efforts around reaching those people.

Determining your target (and ideal) audience

There are thousands of ways that people can be segmented or classified, but there are several ways we can identify who we want to target:

Age

Do you want younger or older people?  Younger people tend to spend more on entertainment and leisure while older people buy bigger-ticket items.  If you’re trying to sell high-end luxury items, running an ad on a teen community site won’t produce the best (if any results).

Gender

Are you trying to reach men or women? The colors of your site can play a huge role in whether you are appealing to males or females.

Income

Are you approaching with something everyone can afford, or catering to the more affluent?  Your products and information will typically gravitate toward a more affluent or more budget-conscious user base.

Geographic location

Are you targeting a global audience, or local?  The phrases and references you use can have a huge impact on the people that visit your site.  If you target globally, you will want to have tools and resources that can assist those outside your native language interpret your site.

Buyers or browsers?

How far into the buying cycle are your visitors?  You want to determine whether you want to reach them at the beginning of their buying process or more towards the end of the cycle.

Skill or knowledge level

Are you targeting beginners or experts?  Knowing the skill level of your visitors will help you narrow down what you offer and how you approach.  Even things like the terms you use will be largely influenced by the skill level of your audience.

How do they consume information?

How does your audience consume their information?  If you are trying to reach senior citizens who love fishing – chances are that Twitter won’t be your best way to reach them.  Find out where they go to get their information and start being seen where they are looking.

Continually evolving and adapting to your audience

One thing about your audience is that it will be in a constant state of change.  As you produce more content and products, you develop a more diverse and varied set of people that visit your site or blog.  The goal is to ultimately narrow in on the most profitable visitors and start speaking to them more directly.  Sometimes you will know exactly who your visitors are and what they’re looking for, and other times you will be in trial and error mode trying to find the best audience.