A geotargeted marketing strategy allows us to draw a circle around particular user groups to better target our efforts. It’s one of the reasons why direct marketing has always been so cost-effective for marketers. The rule of thumb here is to never waste precious marketing dollars advertising to people outside of your trading area!
A geotargeted marketing strategy enables marketers to spotlight specific audiences and seize control of their campaigns. It doesn’t matter if prospects are new homeowners, parents of new babies or swimming pool owners. Marketers who can leverage the contextual power of this kind of advertising. This is they way to unlock many advantages over the rest of the advertisers trying to reach the same prospects.
Here are five ways to use geotargeting and get your campaign moving in the right direction:
1. Define your geography
Lot’s of options. Radius, zip-code, SCF, or state. You can drill down further – by carrier-route, census tract or block group. For businesses that use door-to-door, you can even select by street name.
2. Enhance your selection criteria
Geo-targeting isn’t just about pinpointing users on a map and then. Use your first-party data to determine demographics and behaviors to help create your prospect list. Once you know who you are marketing to (not just where they live), you can deliver relevant content.
3. Segmentation Strategy
It’s not just about drawing that circle and marketing to everyone within that boundary. You can segment your file by demographics or psychographics. This was you can send customized messages to select groups within your boundaries. This kind of fine-tuning can increase ROI dramatically. In this case, you are delivering targeted promotions to specific groups who need your product or service most.
4. Pick the right Marketing Venues
I always use the old adage “different strokes for different folks”. We know that people respond to different marketing channels. The best marketing strategies utilize multiple outbound marketing channels. This way you can reach the broadest audience possible. Studies continue to show that multiple “touches” increase response. You need to use as many marketing channel as you can. Include direct mail, email, telemarketing, and social media marketing to build your brand and increase your response.
5. Test, tweak, test again
I can’t stress this enough. Using a different word, phrase, photo or offer can make a huge difference in response. In direct mail, we suggest an A/B split to test copy or offer. In e-mail, we suggest testing different subject lines or send times. You need to review response carefully to determine which segment of the audience (list) performs best.
Final comment
Always remember that the best geotargeted marketing strategies aren’t single events. They’re works in progress composed of careful steps forward. Consequently, marketers must constantly analyze their current strategy and adjust their program to maximize market reach. Refine demographics, tweak copy, evaluate subject lines, and forge ahead.
Truly, the best way to craft a sustainable, profitable geo-targeted marketing strategy is through careful planning and repetition.