You Are Not Your Customer: How to Analyse Target Audience

If you are not doing proper audience research, you are up for some bad decision-making

You still think your target audience behaves just like you? Likes the same things as you do?

🚨If yes, you are up for some bad decision-making:

🔹You may read all the testimonials before buying, but they will do impulse purchases at midnight.

🔹You may love red in designs, but they will find it… aggressive.

🔹You’re an early bird and schedule workshops at 9 AM, but they’re still drooling on their pillows till 10, even on weekdays. (If you ever wondered why your turnout is low😅)

🧐What if you don't do audience research?

When you skip real audience research, or whip up a quick one based on a very small sample, your decision about product, features, creatives, is over-simplified to “I like it, so they will, too”.

That’s not decision-making, that’s a gamble, with little chances for winning, if I may be honest.

What are the risks?

1️⃣The sample size is one — you.

You might be emotionally invested, highly informed, or just plain biased. Your preferences, habits, fears, and desires are not representative of the people you’re selling to.

2️⃣ There’s no data, only assumptions.

Assumptions are silent killers of good marketing. When you assume your customer will “get it,” or “like it,” or “show up” — you’re making a decision with no proof, shooting in the dark.

3️⃣ Confirmation bias (aka wishful thinking)

You’ll interpret weak signals (a like, a comment, a sale) as validation, when in reality it could be random luck. Or worse, you’ll ignore feedback because it doesn’t match what you would’ve done, or you just didn't feel that feedback was fair.

4️⃣ No learning loop = no improvement.

In gambling, you win or you lose but you rarely learn. The same happens when you don’t study your audience. Without research, you can’t tell what actually worked and why.

🍝You’ll keep throwing spaghetti at the wall hoping something sticks🍝

What's the right way to work with your target audience?

Next time you are shipping a product, a design, a social media post, don’t ask “Do I like it?”

Ask: “Will my audience like it? Understand it? Act on it?”

And for that, you'll have to study them, study hard, like you’re writing their biography.

🔶What do they love?

🔶What do they despise?

🔶When do they wake up?

🔶What they eat for breakfast and what - on a road trip?

🔶 How are they de-stressing, by going to the gym or binge-watching melodramas?

🔶What makes them laugh, cry, reach for the wallet?

Some things you won't agree with, some will make you annoyed or even angry. That's fine. It's not about you anyway, it's about them.

Leave your ego at the door. It's tough, but it's worth it.

So… Do you really know your audience? Or are you still selling to yourself?

Still unsure how to analyse your target audience?

If you are in doubt, I will be happy explain how to do the research or conduct it for you.

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