Despite all my yammering on about goals & planning this year - I didn’t meet my first goal of the year - to register 10 people for my latest workshop, The Snowed In Strategy Sesh.
But I pride myself on being solution-oriented, and I believe there is so much to learn, even from our perceived failures—so even though I didn't reach my goal, I set out to understand why after the fact.
If I’m being honest, I was already aware of some flaws in the January planning workshop model.
- Like the fact that I need a solid two weeks to emotionally recalibrate after spending the holidays with my family #sorrynotsorry
- Or the fact that it is a slow, low-energy time of the year when I’m certainly burnt out on spending money after the holidays (and imagine you are, too).
But I wanted to learn more than that.
First, I asked my audience how I should package the replay - giving them options to get it without the added support or just to get the Notion Dash.
I also planned to ask my audience straight up in an email sent to anyone segmented onto my workshop hotlist (aka. anyone who clicked on the buttons in my email), asking them why they didn’t buy (inspired by Sara at Btl copy).
And that’s when it hit me.
↑ THESE ARE REACTIVE STRATEGIES ↑
While still valuable - I could have been a lot more proactive in the way I was learning about what my audience wanted right now.
I effed up
I didn’t ask any questions ahead of time.
I didn’t follow my own advice.
Somewhere in the craziness of 10 Christmas parties (this is a real number, not for dramatics)...
Shopping, blizzards, and trying to get my still-under-construction house ready for the company (on top of three brand management clients + a strategy build underway).
Whew. Yeah, I was juggling a lot.
And I never did any real Audience research before my launch.
See, audience research isn’t just something you do when you first define your ideal client, niche, and position your brand.
It’s a recurring task of sorts that should be part of your plan whenever you are launching something new for your brand.
Audience research can help us delineate whether or not this is something we want to talk about vs. something that our audience actually wants and sees value in.
Conducting Audience Research proactively is the best way to answer the (digital) age-old question that is knowing the answer to creates the foundation for the messaging and strategy behind every brand and offer launch.
What does your audience want?
And more importantly - is it the thing that you are selling?
Conducting audience research is a natural way to build in public and invite your audience into what you are building behind the scenes.
In fact, as soon as I realized I effed up and didn't do any real audience research for The Snowed In Strategy Workshop, I thought back to a huge Brand Strategy & Design client launch that totally flopped around this time last year.
A launch we had repositioned for & they had been working on for months.
And a launch that I felt guilty about - until I realized one crucial step I recommended - but that they never made time for.
You guessed it… Audience research.
And because I don’t want that to be anyyyy of us.
I’m sharing the audience research strategies I am implementing for my offer & rebrand launch this year + with my 1:1 Brand Management Clients (an offer that I am currently considering “rebranding” as the brand bestie - but more on that soon 😉).
Keep reading for:
- How to build in public & make your audience a part of the conversation
- 3 Audience research strategies (with examples) to help you figure out wtf your audience wants
- A love letter to social media and how it changed in 2024
- Plus, a reminder that it is nowhere near too late to create a plan for your brand this year & 3 resources to help you do it
Build in public & make your audience a part of the conversation with these three audience research strategies
Maybe the Spice Girls were on to something back in 96' with the whole "Tell me what you want, what you really really want" thing.
I mean, does getting inside your audience's head really have to be that complicated?
OR - Could it be as simple as just asking them what they want?
Here are three strategies you can implement to learn more about your audience and refine your messaging and offers this year.
STRATEGY #1
Instagram Stories - the ol’ faithful (until no one votes)
Instagram polls have been a go-to for audience research since they were added as a sticker in stories - but the problem can be getting people to actually vote on them.
Here’s a strategy you can implement to get more engagement ↓
First: Tell them WTF you are doing, working on, or wanting to learn about, and invite them in on the behind-the-scenes
Second: Post 5-ish ( I think that’s a sweet spot) specific polls & give them clear options. You don’t want to make your readers think too much, or they will just swipe on.
Third: Ask again - I saw everyone’s fave social strategist, Nicole @ Groovy Social, do this a while back, and I thought it was so smart.
After your polls go up - share a shot of your face (so it feels more personal) and ask them to go back and vote if they haven’t already. Reiterate how this helps you create better offers/content for them!
STRATEGY #2
Threads - the new kid on the block
What is great about doing audience research on threads is you can reach people in your target audience who aren’t part of your audience yet. Again, when it comes to doing Audience research on threads, be DIRECT. Don’t try to be witty, or mysterious, just share what you are trying to learn.
Hanna at Boundless Copy does a greatttt job of that here ↓
Threads is also an awesome audience listening platform - where your ideal clients and customers are probably already discussing and looking for solutions to their problems, so simply scrolling and searching can teach a lot about what they are really looking to learn about.
STRATEGY #3
1:1 calls - the non-ick coffee date invite
Does anyone else remember way back in the day when Rachel Hollis was the reigning queen of “how to build and market your business,” and we were all out here awkwardly thinking we had to meet up and have coffee dates with the people we wanted to learn about?
Not only is your target audience possibly not in a coffee date area - but also that whole vibe can give off “okay, but what do you want from me?”.
Casual interview-style calls are another great way to do audience research.
In the past, I’ve seen this done a lot when interviewing past clients.
But I love the idea of sitting down with people you haven’t worked with, too.
I haven’t done this 1:1 yet (although I plan to implement it soon) but I was on the other side of it earlier this year when I met with Mariah Magazine to give feedback on Semrush a tool she uses and was hired to consult for.
If you are someone who doesn’t have a ton of authority yet - you could pair this with some kind of a free “give” for their time, which is not only an incentive but also something you can share about in real time to build awareness and authority in the meantime.
|
|
And if you are over here, like, okay, Catie, but this sounds like a lot of social media - and like, aren’t people leaving Meta?
Are Instagram and Threads really where I should be? 😵💫
Honestly, I didn’t think I needed to comment on this until someone brought it up in my live workshop on Wednesday.
And I have thoughts, and they might not be what you think - in fact, I wrote a love letter to social media and how It changed in 2024.
|
Regardless of whether you are still just trying to get your shit together for the year or if you are trying to figure out where socials fit into your brand's content strategy for 2025, I want you to have the resources you need to feel prepared and excited to tackle the goals you have for your brand this year.
Even if you didn't meet a lot of your goals for 2024.
Even if - January has felt like a rocky start to the year.
Even if social media and marketing make your brand feel more volatile than ever before,
There is so much still under your control.
|
|
GET THE REPLAY
create your brand strategy for 2025
Choose to get The Snowed In Stratgey workshop recording with or without 1:1 support or feedback.
|
|
|
FOR THE NOTION NERDIES
get the 2025 brand roadmap template
A brand planning Notion Dash is designed to help you create a life-first plan for growing your brand & accomplishing your business goals in 2025.
|
|
|
THE SUNDAY SAUCE ON SUBSTACK
everything I am doing to plan for my brand, business, and life in 2025
As a 30-year-old Brand Designer, Strategist, Full Time Creative Entrepreneur, and perpetual planner
|