That is the question.  Before you start a content marketing or social media campaign, this is the first question you must answer.  Not every piece needs to have the same audience, but a defined audience is required for every piece of content.

Sometimes business owners will define an audience in extremely broad terms, usually out of fear of alienating potential customers. This creates some difficulty for your content creators, who need specifics to create impactful content.

Think about it like you’re asking someone to buy a gift for your customers. If you say the gift is for a professional between the ages of 25 and 60, without any particular specifics as to taste or lifestyle, the person buying the gift would have no direction.  And in the absence of specifics, would likely get a fairly generic gift – the latest bestselling book or maybe one size fits all socks.  Nothing interesting, nothing exciting, nothing noteworthy, nothing memorable.

But if you said this gift was for a golf enthusiast in her 40’s with teenaged children, the person buying the gift might choose a round of golf and a relaxing massage. Much more memorable.

Content is like a gift. You want it to be noteworthy instead of generic. In order to do that, you need to know who you’re talking to.