Understanding your Audience

Understanding your Audience

and Attracting your Target Market

When looking to attract clientele, it’s important to gain an understanding of who your audience is and what they need from you. The persona you communicate through your headshot influences how people perceive you. It’s the difference between them choosing you over your competition.

Psychology is a key element in understanding how your clients think and who they are looking to connect and do business with so let’s get to it.

UNDERSTANDING YOUR AUDIENCE

Your audience is the people out there seeing you and your content through your marketing, social media and website. They are the people already following you and the people you want to do business with.

Now for some target audience 101…Your Target Audience is not “Everyone”!!!

You cannot be everything to everyone so stop trying to. Zero in on who you want to do business with most and then get started analyzing. Here’s some demographics to consider.

1. Age range
2. Income level
3. Gender
4. Areas they live and work in

All these things have a place in determining how people think, how they work and what they are looking for from you as a business professional. Once you’ve zeroed in on your audience then dig a little deeper into analyzing that demographic. What do these people look for when looking to work with a professional such as yourself?

Let’s analyze a few different industries and what a client looks for when choosing a professional to work with.

Scenario 1:

Say you are a financial planner with an audience of high-income earners in the top 10% in your area in the 40-60 age range. With this demographic you can say that these people are no-nonsense type of people that are attracted to confidence in someone that can get the job done competently and efficiently. They are more interested in someone that can get the job done than someone holding their hand through the whole process.

Scenario 2:

This time you are a child therapist working with children in the 5-14 age range. Keep in mind that while the child is your main client, their parents are the ones that will be researching who is the best fit to work with their child. Your target audience are parents in the 25-40 age range with mid-level income in your local area. When the parent jumps online to look at all the options out there, they are looking for someone that is competent yet compassionate and approachable. Someone that looks like they will take good care of their child.

Scenario 3:

Now let’s take a turn into the creative field and you are a videographer, and your target market is businesses that are looking to reach their audiences through video on social media platforms. These businesses are looking for someone that is innovative, has a creative eye and is a tech expert.

Now put yourself in the same scenario. Who is your audience? What kind of person are they looking to work with in your industry? Are you showing yourself off as that kind of person?

If you would like to dive in deeper into defining your target audience then Marketing Evolution has a great article to read here.

ATTRACTING YOUR TARGET MARKET

Now that you have an understanding of your audience, next is to attract them to you with your professional headshot. Relating to your clients is the best way to get their business.

Become what your target audience is looking for

Do your clients need someone that is confidant and strong willed or is it more important that they work with a person that is caring and approachable? Your career field and who you want to attract as a client weighs in on the expressions prominent in your headshot. If you are in the medical field people are drawn to a headshot that is compassionate, knowledgeable, and approachable. You don’t look at a picture of a very stern and unfriendly doctor and say, “Oh yeah, I want to work with that guy, he looks so understanding.” In the same context, when looking to hire a business coach, you want to work with someone that paints the picture of a savvy expert and exudes the kind of confidence that shows you they can take your business to the next level.

Once you get a handle on what your audience is looking for then you can use that in conjunction with your own little spice and give your clients what they need through your expression. I like to work your personality in with your professional characteristics to create a well-rounded headshot. Working with a professional photographer that helps with expression coaching is key to getting that client attracting headshot. You can also work in some color psychology into your wardrobe when choosing what to bring to your session.

Let’s talk body language from the shoulders up. Approachability comes from the mouth, confidence is in the set of the shoulders and connection comes from the eyes. It’s the small little nuances in your expression and posture that tells the story. What story is your headshot telling your future clients? Is it the right one?

Take some time to define and write down who your target market is, then list out the character traits important for you to key in on. These are traits you want people to see when they look at your headshot. I find it helpful to list out 2-4 keywords to focus on. Now look for those traits in your current headshot. Is it time for an update?

I am an expression coach specializing in business professional headshots. Unlock your full potential with a headshot that is clean, modern and highly professional that connects you with your target audience.

To learn more about expression in your executive headshots, check out my blog post “The Power of Expression”.

To learn more about headshot pricing and scheduling a session, check out this page.