Researching the target audience for your existing business or one you are about to launch will be the difference between its success or failure. It will chart and define the manner of interaction with your target audience and market through the lifetime of your business. There are popular research tools available online that can help your business perfectly understand your niche and devise the fitting marketing strategies.
Here’s a look at 7 research tools for your business target audience;
#1. Google Analytics
It is probably the most popular of the research tools. Google Analytics informs on your website traffic and your audience’s demographics, interests and behavior. With it, website owners and marketers are able to track and analyze website traffic and user behavior. All you have to do is install a tracking code on a website and Google Analytics can collect data on the pages people visit, how long they stay on each page, how they found the website, and their activity. Whether it’s making a purchase or filling out a form. This data can help the business owners and their marketing departments to make informed decisions about website design, content, and marketing strategies to improve user engagement, drive more traffic and increase conversion rates.
#2. SurveyMonkey
SurveyMonkey is a research tool designed to collect data from your audience through surveys and questionnaires. You get to ask specific questions about their preferences, interests and behavior. SurveyMonkey offers a wide range of survey templates, question types, and survey customization options, making it easy for users and business owners to create surveys that meet their specific needs. You are able to distribute surveys via email, social media or embedded links on your website. SurveyMonkey provides real-time results and analytics, allowing users to track survey responses and analyze data in a variety of formats, including charts, graphs, and pivot tables. SurveyMonkey is commonly used by businesses, academic institutions, government agencies for market research, customer satisfaction surveys, employee feedback and event planning. Additionally, it offers flexible payment options, depending on the features and level of customization required.
#3. Facebook Audience Insights
If you have a Facebook page for your business, Facebook Audience Insights can provide valuable data on your followers’ demographics, interests and behavior. It is a free tool that was conceived by Facebook to help advertisers understand their target audience better. With the information on demographics, interests, behavior and purchasing habits, advertisers can create more effective and targeted ads to specific audiences. Other than understanding the existing customers, it helps to identify new audiences that are similar to your existing audience and create targeted ads for them.
#4. Twitter Analytics
This is a free research tool similar to Google Analytics. It provides data on your Twitter audience, including demographics and engagement metrics. Twitter Analytics provides valuable insights into how tweets are performing and how users engage with content. Twitter Analytics allows users to;
- View an overview of account activity, such as tweet impressions, profile visits and increase in follower numbers (and retention rates)
- Analyze individual tweet performance, including impressions, engagement rate, and link clicks
- Understand the demographics of the audience, including age, gender, and location
- Discover what topics interest your audience the most
Twitter Analytics can also provide data on ad performance for those running Twitter ads. For example, insights into the cost per engagement, click-through rate, and conversion rate of ads.
#5. SEMrush
This research tool allows you to research your audience’s search habits and behavior by providing information on the keywords searched and websites visited. SEMrush is designed to help businesses with search engine optimization (SEO), pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, social media marketing, content marketing, and competitor research. It is used by businesses to improve online visibility and drive traffic to their websites. Businesses can use SEMrush to analyze their website’s technical performance, identify issues affecting their search engine rankings, and receive recommendations for improving the website’s performance. SEMrush also includes social media management tools, allowing users to schedule posts, monitor social media accounts, and analyze social media engagement.
#6. Google Trends
All successful online marketers start their day by viewing Google Trends. To become one, you simply have to incorporate the habit of using this research tool. Google Trends allows individuals and businesses to see what people are searching for in real-time and identify trends and topics that are popular with their audience. With Google Trends, users can;
- Explore search trends for specific keywords, topics, or categories in specific regions or worldwide.
- Compare the popularity of multiple search terms to see how they have performed over time.
- Identify related queries and topics that are currently trending or have become popular over time.
- Analyze the interest by sub-region, related queries and topics, related queries that rose or dropped in popularity, queries that breakout (grew rapidly) and queries that are consistently popular.
- Filter the data by different categories, time frames, and Google search properties (such as images or news).
- Analyze how the volume of searches for specific keywords is affected by external factors like news events, product launches or seasonal trends.
#7. Quora
This is a question-and-answer platform where people ask and answer questions. You can use it to research your audience’s interests, questions and concerns and create tailor-made content that addresses those needs. Quora users can ask questions on a wide variety of topics e.g health, business and technology. They then receive answers from a community of respondents that includes experts from various backgrounds and ordinary users. Since it was launched in 2009, Quora has become one of the largest online knowledge-sharing platforms in the world. Over and above just asking questions and getting responses, Quora allows you to do the following;
- Follow specific topics, questions and users to receive updates and notifications about new content.
- Upvote or downvote answers based on their quality and relevance.
- Edit and improve answers to make them more accurate or helpful.
- Connect with other users who share similar interests and expertise.
- Use Quora as a platform to establish yourself as an expert in your field by sharing your knowledge and insights with the community.
Contact Venture and Grow for more tips on improving your business.
