Stone Road Media Digital Marketing Blog and News

The Power of Knowing Your Customer

By Jeremy Flinn, Chief Marketing Officer

Whether you run your own small business or are in charge of a small piece of a large business, knowing your customer may be more important than any other thing that you do. No one has ever been successful selling a good or service to a customer they didn’t know. Even the late Steve Jobs knew that normal, everyday people wanted personal home computers, even before those people knew it themselves! Sure, you could make it by throwing generalized ads and marketing to the masses, but at the end of the day no other aspect of your business’s plan will be more critical than the foundation upon which you build…your target customer.

For some small business owners, their entire financial well-being will collapse by misinterpreting who their customer is. But that’s more of a rarity. In fact, most businesses know exactly who their customers are, as they have been the same for many years. But even these businesses can still trip and fall, when it comes to identifying how to market to a customer that you have not adapted too.

Far too often this is what happens in the outdoor industry. An aging demographic has led us to continue to market to the stronghold buyer. “Ol’ Reliable” that you know reads magazines and watches TV. The instant gratification is great, and year after year income remains where we like it to be. But there is a darkness looming. One that most do not want to realize, the fact that this old reliable customer is fading, and soon revenue will slip.

Millennials are driving the marketing in today’s true business world. We tend to sit on an island as the outdoor industry, just doing what has worked for us over the years. But soon what has worked, will no longer work. The day that comes to fruition, is a day that many will collapse under the immense pressure for footing in the digital marketplace. From search engine optimization to social media, from paid digital ads to pay per click ads, the digital marketing realm is one that is not taken advantage of by many brands in the outdoor industry. Brands that have long stood the test of time, yet still do not have a mobile responsive website! Are you kidding me? Did you miss the “Mobilegeddon” from Google? Guess so.

However, there are some who have embraced the digital front. Growing there brand steadily, and tracking all the benefits of the digital world. More importantly gaining information about their customers. Not just those who are already buying, but more importantly those who will be buying. The world of advertising is rapidly changing. If you have not yet adapted, you are missing the boat. If you aren’t sure if you adapted, pull out your smartphone and go to your website, does it look clean and navigable? I didn’t think so…

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