Understanding your target market
April 13th, 2006I have started to use Firefox as my browser a while ago (and I like it a lot). They have been extremely successful in marketing this (free) new browser, even getting recognised as “one of the top 10 most influential brands. (Always take that with a grain of salt; read the disclaimer about their research sample..)
The software is an “open source” software application, meaning that other developers are encouraged to help develop and add-on to the product. They have taken a similar route in their advertising encouraging users to create a TV commercial for them. This is a lot of fun, but what is really powerful is how well they understand their audience; read the brief below. Could you describe your customers in such detail?
The primary target audience for the Firefox advertising campaign are moderately experienced Web users, who are comfortable with using the Web but are not necessarily power users. These users understand how to download and install software, and use the Web for basic activities: reading news, web-based email, limited online shopping and banking. They may rely as much on the physical Yellow Pages as they do Yahoo! or Google. They may also have had negative experiences with the Web as a result of spyware, viruses and other Web nuisances. Yet they see the value in the Web, and so return. But they likely do not clearly understand how a Web browser can
improve their Web experience.
