Biz Owners: How To Find Your Audience's Muse

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There’s always a way for you to master your wordplay so that you can pull your audience in and keep them in.

I’ve learned that the key way to find your audience’s muse (their source of inspiration) is to find out what makes them tick; find out how they respond to the products or services in your market and discover what they get fired up about.

For example: as a writer of young adult fiction, I know the teens I’m targeting are inspired by technology, social interaction and culture influencers. So, I write with that in mind. It doesn’t mean I write about those things, but I keep that in mind when I’m writing books for that age group. This helps me keep the language to something they can relate to and that won’t bore them.

Even when it comes to your podcast material, your audience should be in mind and you should know what inspires them. If you can get to what inspires them, you can tap into their passion. Don’t think because you aren’t a “writer” that you can’t master this skill.

Even as an entrepreneur, your social media post should read well to your audience. Are you writing too much thinking it will sell more?

So how exactly do you find your audience’s muse? Here are 5 key ways to discover that muse to help you grow your audience and pull them in forever.

1) Go straight to the source. Find someone in your target audience who is willing to talk to you for free. It shouldn’t take more than an hour. Do an interview. This is also a good way to show how passionate you are about selling your product or service. I’ve done so many focus groups with teens, it’s ridiculous. But do this with a focus to serve them and not to get their money.

2) Create an avatar. If you aren’t sure what an avatar is, stop right now and go create one. It’s a look at the person or people who would use your services, fleshed out on paper. It literally describes your market to the T - their look, buying habits, what they are feeling, etc. If you want an example, google ‘how to create an avatar for my business’.

3) Create a marketing position statement. It’s the key to figuring this whole thing out. Google it or sign up for my services. It’s part of my content creation service that I use to help entrepreneurs.

4) Good-old Fashioned Surveys. Put a few surveys up for free on your social media platforms. Most people are willing to take a free survey. Surveys help you decipher between what you “think” you know and what you “need” know.

5) Talk to your audience consistently. Periscope or IGTV is a great way to do this. I prefer instagrams new TV feature. Even though they can’t go past ten minutes, I think that’s what makes it perfect for entrepreneurs and writers. The idea is to get them off of our social pages and onto our websites where all the great stuff is. Give them one or two episodes a week and tweak as you go along. If you’re new to branding, do it everyday for a whole week, dedicating that time to asking your audience key questions. Make sure you’re engaging so you can answer their questions.

Finding your audience’s muse isn’t as hard as it sounds. The challenge is cutting through the noise of social media to get to the ones that have your answer. It’ll take some grit and hard work, but hey - building a sustainable and profitable business always does.

If you’d like to discuss with me how you can find your audience’s muse, comment below and I’ll send you links to some of my services.