B2B Excellence - Is hyper targeting costing you billions in revenue

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Main POV - Is hyper targeting costing you billions in revenue

“Hyper-targeting might be the single most destructive idea in B2B marketing.”

Contrarian take on the default approach for B2B marketers everywhere.

However, a strong perspective backed up by data and research suggesting our ingrained approach to targeting could in fact be flawed.

Key Insight?

• Law of brand profiles vs ideal customer profile = anyone who buys your category vs a carefully select cohort of users who match our ideal customer profile
• If hyper-segmentation and hyper-targeting worked as advertised, then you wouldn’t see rival brands – all with different segmentation and targeting choices – all ending up with the same mix of customers
• “The evidence shows that rival brands can, and do, sell to all types of customers. Your competitors’ customers can become yours. They resemble your existing customers. No category buyer is off limits, so include as many as you can in your marketing activities.

Closing Statement

Extreme segmentation and hyper-targeting increase your costs and complexity without increasing your financial performance. Targeting big companies in specific verticals is more expensive than targeting companies of all sizes and verticals, and it doesn’t actually work.

Hyper-targeting limits your growth by cutting you off from customers. It’s a shrinking strategy, not a growth strategy. Our close personal friend Michael Jordan famously said that “Republicans buy sneakers too.” Yes, that’s the sound of Michael Jordan dunking on all the hyper-targeters in B2B and B2C. Michael Jordan didn’t want Nike to hyper-target Democrats because he didn’t want to limit his sales from Republicans, a massive segment of high-potential customers.

Broadly targeting anyone who could buy from you, now or in the future, is the path to sustainable growth in B2B (and B2C). You need to be able to acquire customers across all segments. Some customers will be heavy, some will be light. Some will work in tech, some will work in finance. Some will work at big companies, some at small companies.

Consideration

It’s a compelling perspective, and one for brands to be mindful of when setting their course for their marketing strategy.

Targeting is one of many key planning decisions that require considered thought.

Not every brand has the luxury of huge brand investment, so there must be a line drawn somewhere.?

Broad targeting is absolutely foundational for long-term brand growth, but hyper-targeting will still have its role for certain verticals, campaigns and marketing initiatives.?

But understanding the brand user profile argument will enable you to navigate around both long-term brand-building growth and situational tactical targeting.

Source

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