Small Audience, Big Results
Less is more. And in a marketing campaign, this cliché can hold true. We’re not
talking about less effort or less time, but simply, less people – a smaller
audience. Some marketing efforts require a big push toward a small group
because, as the price tag on a product or service goes up, the number of
potential “bites” goes down. If you are touting a big-ticket item but seeing
little interest, it may be time to rethink your marketing strategy and narrow
your target audience.
In these situations, messaging must be handled with extra care to ensure the
needs of your exclusive group are met. When you succeed, it often means bigger
ROI and long-lasting relationships with your customers. The potential of
targeted marketing campaigns is huge, but it only goes as far as research and
execution takes you.
First Thing’s First
After deciding it’s time to tackle a small audience, there is little room for
error when building that all-important personal connection with your target. If
your campaign misses the mark, you can’t make up for it within another niche of
your demographic – your entire audience has already been distilled down to a
small group with very specific tastes.
This challenge can be met with effective, diligent research. But demographics
are not enough. You have to go beyond age, race and income to truly understand
the group’s values as they relate to your product or service.
The Old College Try
Carnegie Mellon University presented Brady Communications with the challenge of
creating a marketing campaign aimed at a small group of prestigious alumni. To
acknowledge their most loyal and generous donors, as well as encourage future
support, CMU wanted to create a formal brand for its top-tier donor society.
The result? The
Highlands Circle. The name and logo were created to reflect the
influential nature of the society as well as the ideas of philanthropy,
heritage and pride.
In addition to the brand identity, we helped CMU plan an inaugural weekend for
society inductees, complete with a keepsake booklet inviting members to attend,
custom-etched champagne glasses, and even a custom publication that included an
artist’s portrait and biography of each member of the society.
By increasing the appeal and honor of belonging to The Highlands Circle, Brady
Communications helped CMU ensure that members would continue giving for years
to come and that new members would strive to be part of the elite group. In
fact, the Highlands Circle program was such a success that CMU later returned
to Brady Communications for help designing identities for additional donor
societies:
the Dunfermline and Skibo Circles.
California, Here We Come
In the campaign for the CMU donor societies, it was all about focusing the
attention on a prestigious group and tapping into their professional and
emotional psyches. The marketing itself reached a relatively small audience
through alumni materials and invitation-only inaugural events. But in some
instances, reaching a small audience requires a much bigger delivery. Such was
the case with CGI, a global IT solutions provider.
CGI had maintained a professional relationship with the California government
for over 25 years, but given California’s dire economic situation, CGI saw an
opportunity to strengthen their business partnership. CGI was looking to market
their ERP systems (hardware and software used to integrate multiple data
processes into one, organized system), which are particularly valuable for
governments.
Given this expensive and complex product, the marketing campaign was aimed at a
target group that consisted of only 300 individuals: state employees between
the ages of 35 and 64 with an advanced education and an upper-middleclass
household income.
In preparing for the campaign, we partnered with a media buyer to determine our
best access points to the government workers. The final result was a widespread
marketing effort that reached government officials commuting to and from work,
walking near the Capitol, and traveling in and out of Sacramento International
Airport. CGI’s message was delivered through a variety of media, including
radio advertisements, digital and print billboards, airport advertisements,
transit shelters and
direct mail.
The CGI California campaign, although geared toward a very small group of
people, was extensive in its reach. Over the course of several months, state
government employees in California were consistently reminded of the solutions
and potential cost savings (a centerpiece of the campaign) of a partnership
with CGI, and just one lead can provide the IT solutions company with a huge
return. The campaign also showed the California officials that CGI was
committed to the state and there to stay.
What We’ve Learned
Sometimes, it pays to be persnickety. A big target does not always mean you
have a better chance of hitting the bull’s-eye. If your product or service is
only practical for a select group of individuals, then choose them wisely and
don’t waste your resources on a larger but irrelevant group.
Do your homework. Relating to your audience and establishing a sense of
familiarity is vital to your campaign’s success. Through detailed research, you
can discover the best methods for meeting the needs of your audience.
Execute! A smaller audience does not require you to market on a small scale,
but this determination really depends on your product, your audience and your
budget. As shown in the CGI example, sometimes you can reach your petite-sized
audience more effectively with a large, sprawling delivery. In other instances,
your time and money might be better spent on a more concentrated campaign (as
in the case of CMU).