Target audience: everyone?
There’s something so sweet about a brand writing for everyone isn’t there? It makes us think of those generic wedding dancefloor playlists. The ones that need to appeal to your college student cousins just as much as your elderly grandparents, leaving you no choice but to opt for overplayed classics like Buttercup, Come On Eileen and Wonderwall.
But here’s the thing. When it comes to your brand, you don’t get the chance to play Drake when the older folks have gone to bed. You’ve got one shot to reach the people you want to impress and you can’t afford to lose it.
Here are a few reasons your brand might be falling into “wedding playlist territory” and what you can do to get yourself the hell outta there.
You’re worried about leaving people out
It’s easy to think speaking to a specific group means neglecting all the other lovely people out there. Instead though, try and see it as focussing on the the ones you really need to connect with just that little bit more. Tailoring your tone or your offering ever so slightly for one particular group, doesn’t mean your main points won’t still shine through for anyone else who might be interested. It just means you have more chance of breaking through the noise for the ones you absolutely need to notice.
In other words, you might be playing Taylor Swift’s relatable lyrics for your millennial girlfriends, but if your great aunt likes what she hears, she’s probably going to be a Swiftie by the end of the night too.
2. You think you should be speaking to everyone
Okay, unless you’re Google this probably isn’t true. You should be able to work out who’s buying your product and visiting your website most, or at least know the type of person you want to be doing those things. If not, you run a high risk of your brand’s messaging being of the “generic mush” variety and sorry but, nobody has time for that. You have to figure out who you’re talking to or you’ll have no hope of making anyone feel something about your brand. We’ll always tell you straight.
In our head it’s the difference between someone mindlessly bopping along to ‘Cheerleader’ while they floss, and the millions of Lady Gaga fans who say she gave them the confidence to be their true selves. Make sure your brand is a Lady Gaga. Every. Time.
3. You’ve got a few different groups to speak to
There’s nothing wrong with wanting to target a few different groups with your content, but speaking to them all in exactly the same way still isn’t the answer. Instead, try and tailor your messaging (even a little bit) for each group. It doesn’t need to take forever — a few small tweaks and a headline change could be job done.
Take a blog post on ‘the best recipes for student budgets’ as an example. A little bit of upfront strategy and planning, and it can just as easily become a piece on ‘family (and wallet) friendly recipes’ too. Let’s not forget Sweetbox who adapted Bach’s ‘Air on a G-String’ for an R&B audience, with their 1997 classic ‘Everything’s Gonna Be Alright’.