When I first started running FB Ads I was fascinated… I remember discovering a tool that had the ability to target 35-year-old female cat lovers with a household income of $120,000, conservative political beliefs, and was also interested in yoga (pre-Cambridge Analytica days). How could I not be a millionaire with this tool at the tip of my fingers, right?

So I did what most entrepreneurs would do. I found a niche, built a store, and started running ads. I got a couple of sales- I mean I was selling a cat necklace to people interested in “Must Love Cats” and “Cat Lady”, but it wasn’t scalable let alone sustainable. Why? Because correlation does not imply causation. And this is where you have to really know your audience… beyond what the numbers tell you. You need to know why your customers might want your product.

Say you’re a yogurt company promoting a new line of quick, full nutrient breakfast Yogurt.

Which would you rather know about your audience?

1. 23-34 yr old Male | White Collar | lives in NYC | high-income | works in finance

2️. He is too busy to eat breakfast, leading to concerns about his health

The answer is both! All of the information is crucial for your ad campaigns. 

Step 1 – Know who your audience is

Step 2 – Know why your audience buys

How?

Interpret the data (session value is a great metric for e-commerce), hypothesize, send out surveys, watch your audience, join their communities (Reddit is free)… do whatever it takes until you truly understand them. I spent an hour last week in my FMCG’s section of the grocery store watching people buy. What brand(s) were they buying? Why did they choose that brand? Was the purchase driven emotionally or did they simply reach for what was on sale? Heck, I even asked them why they chose brand A over brand B, and if they would consider brand C.

Applying the Knowledge

Now that you know who your audience is and why they buy, it’ll be much easier to break through the clutter. This is where you must get creative. We know that our audience is interested in Finance, so let’s incorporate numbers into our ad to get their attention. We also need to mention the fresh fruit servings (as requested by the client), so maybe we can work those two together. What’s the final message? Simple. Our audience is concerned about his health as a result of missing breakfast; so let’s talk to him about that. Disciplined creativity is the name of the game here.

This is advertising.

Know who your audience is and why your audience might purchase your products! This is the only way to create ad campaigns that count. It can be difficult to become too focused on short-term goals in your advertising campaigns. Instead of rushing to make a quick sale, work on making meaningful relationships and connections with your customer base. By understanding the why of your customer base, you are more likely to build a well-rounded brand that can impact more customers.