It’s not just who your target is, but how they behave.  Defining your audience in both terms is critical for creating a compelling proposition and converting members of this audience into customers. Behaviors inform needs – products and services provide solutions.  Marketing bridges them together.

We’ve all been reading a lot about the investment and banking chaos.  Businesspundit had an interesting post which characterized investors not by demographics (age, race, location), but by psychographics & behaviors.   

Spenders - These people live for today and nothing beyond. A lot of them cannot conceive of the future, so they don’t prepare for it.

Savers - I have a friend who said to me several years ago: “I work too hard for my money to risk it in the stock market.” She keeps all her money in the bank, or a nearby mattress.

Passive Investors - These folks like to believe they are investing in the stock market, but they do so in such a passive way (ie. depositing money into a 401k and then forgetting about it) that they may as well keep their money in certificates of deposit.

Active Investors – Here are the people who analyze fundamentals of the companies they invest in. They understand that they are loaning money to these businesses and they actively monitor the results of their investments.

Entrepreneurs and Capitalists - These are your risk takers. They will put everything they have into a venture they believe in. The amount of money is irrelevant. Whether it’s one rent house or that investment bank at the bargain basement price, if it’s promising these people go for it.

Understanding your audience’s behavior helps shape communication: the way a product resonates with passive investors is different than what an entrepreneur and risk taker is looking for.  It also helps shape your investment strategy for marketing: Can’t be all things to all people; prioritize groups which are more likely grow your business.