Table of Contents
Acknowledgments xiii
Introduction: You Can’t Reach a Customer You Don’t Understand xv
Part I: Seven Steps for Selling to New and Unfamiliar Customers 1
1 Get Out of Your Comfort Zone to Grow Sales 3
‘‘Spray and Pray’’ versus Broad Thinking and Narrowcasting 3
Toyota Tundras, Nike, and iPhones 6
Tapping Into the Hearts and Minds of New Customers also Means Tapping Into Their Wallets 10
2 Get to Know the Customer You’re Not Getting but Should Be 12
Who are These People? Babies, Girl Scouts, and Amtrak 12
Go Online and Read Everything You Can about the Group You Want to Target 16
Attend Events, Meetings, and Gatherings of Your Potential Customer; Observe and Talk to Attendees to Find Out What’s on Their Minds 17
How to Research a New and Unfamiliar Customer Segment to Find Their Values, Tastes, Needs, and Concerns 18
Listen to Complaints 19
Hire from the Target Group, if Possible 20
Understand that the Way We Receive Information Shapes Us All 20
How to Hire a Marketing or Advertising Consultant Who Understands the Target Group You Want 22
3 What Do They Need? Tweak Your Product or Service Offerings 24
Real Men Eat Salad 26
Shop at Sam’s, Get a Loan 28
Target in East Harlem 28
No Bifocals for Me, Thanks! 28
Moving Mom and Making it Easier 29
4 Make Your Sales and Customer Service Friendly: Little Things Make a Big Difference 33
Operational Readiness—The ‘‘Secret Sauce’’ in Marketing to People Not Like You 34
Operational Friendliness 38
New Hours, New Uniform 39
Do the Easy Things First 40
5 Communicate in Their ‘‘Language’’: Develop Marketing Messages Based on Their Values 42
Transcreation, Not Translation 46
Tweak Your Marketing, Advertising, Signage, and Web Site in Other Languages 50
‘‘But This is America—Speak English!’’ 51
6 Use Technology to Reach Your Prospects: Micro Targeting 53
Using Free or Inexpensive Online Tools 54
7 Deal with Naysayers: What If Your Employees or Your Core Audience Don’t Like Seeing Their Product Marketed to Other Groups? 67
Subaru and Dentists 67
Part II: Key Customers Who Could Drive Your Business Growth 73
8 Different Ages Want Different Things 75
Matures: Born before 1946 76
Baby Boomers: Born 1946–1964 80
Gen X: Born 1965–1981 84
Gen Y: Born 1982–1994 86
Gen Z: Born 1995–2004 88
9 Women: Singles, Heads of Household, Working Moms and Stay-at-Home Moms, Home-Schooling, and More 91
10 Immigrants: It’s About Acculturation, Not Assimilation 102
Acculturation, Not Assimiliation: Targeting Immigrant Groups by Acculturation 104
11 Hispanics/Latinos: North America’s Fastest-Growing Ethnic Minority 112
Cinco de Mayo Is Not Mexican Independence Day 113
Why the U.S. Latino Market Is Super Caliente 114
The ‘‘Size of the Prize’’ 115
Step 1: ‘‘Latino-Ready’’ and ‘‘Latino-Friendly’’—Operational Readiness Is Everything 116
Step 2: When to Use Spanish in Marketing Messages 126
Step 3: Transcreation, Not Translation 129
Step 4: New Products, New Hours, New Uniforms 131
Step 5: Customer Service Is Your Secret Weapon 134
12 African-Americans: A Large and Lucrative Customer Base 136
Insight 1: Show People of Color When Targeting People of Color 138
Insight 2: Diversity in Skin Tone Is Very Important 139
Insight 3: Don’t Even Use People in Ads at All—Leave It Open to Interpretation 140
Insight 4: Keep It Real 140
Insight 5: You Don’t Have to Make It ‘‘Brown’’ to Appeal to African-Americans 143
Insight 6: People of Color Aspire to More than Just Sports, Music, and Fashion 144
Insight 7: Get Involved and Support the Community 147
Insight 8: Food, Music, and Socializing Are Central to African-American Culture 149
Insight 9: Don’t Take Advantage of African-American Customers 150
13 Asians and Asian-Americans: The Highest Household Income of Any Racial or Ethnic Group 152
The U.S. Asian Population 153
Step 1: Evaluate the ‘‘Size of the Prize’’ 155
Step 2: Learn about Which Subsegment Represents Your Greatest Market Opportunity 156
Step 3: Explore Asian Media Options 156
Step 4: Make Sure You Use Qualified Translation Services, if Necessary 156
Step 5: Explore Online/Digital Marketing 158
Step 6: Educate Yourself about Key Cultural Aspects of Your Target Market 158
Step 7: Get Involved in the Community 159
Part III: Other Important Market Segments 161
14 Political Views 163
15 Sexuality: Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgendered 168
16 Hobbies and Special Interests 180
Direct Marketing 184
Special Interest Magazines or Web Sites 184
Editorial Contributions 185
Venue Marketing 186
Niche Marketing (Relationship Marketing) 186
Association Marketing 188
Connectors 189
17 Rural versus Metro 191
Metro (Urban) Living 191
Rural Living 192
18 Military versus Civilian 196
19 Vegetarians versus Meat Eaters 202
Reaching Vegetarians 205
Reaching Meat Eaters 207
Conclusion 211
Index 213
