A recent report from the CMO Council has given us an insight into marketers thoughts and plans for next year.

The most common theme; improved targeting. When asked, “What steps are you taking to maximise the impact and value of your marketing in the next 12 months?” over 60 percent said improving customer segmentation and targeting was a priority.

What else is on the horizon for marketers in 2015?

  • Localising strategies (38%)
  • Further investment in digital and online relationship building (33%)
  • Testing campaigns to validate potential impact (31%)

What does this mean for your business?

Is there anything worse than receiving a text message or email from a brand that is completely irrelevant to yourself? The opposite can be said when you receive a well thought out one, it makes you feel special. Segmentation offers you the chance to create a personalised experience for your consumers. Improved targeting can go as far as you want it to, but the more time and effort you put into it the more likely you are to improve your chances of people engaging with your brand. Demographics, geographic, buyer frequency, behavioural; these are just some of the categories by which you can segment your audience to create a relevant message.

This is really important for smaller businesses as well. With inferior marketing budgets to global brands; its important to make every penny spent as effective as possible. Local businesses normally compete on a local level which makes geographic segmentation particularly important.