What good does it do to hyper-target your market if you don’t tailor your messages and offers to reflect the targeting?
If you’re going to send all your segmented target audiences the same or almost the same messages and offers anyway, why bother targeting?
And this goes beyond just changing the obvious aspects of the message and offer, such as making sure you use a picture of a guy (instead of a girl) when advertising a dating site to women, though that’s obviously important too.
Think also in terms of self-image, markers of in-group identities, psychology, and so on. In a word, think Tribal.
Here’s what that means:
Surfers have their own lingo, their own superstars, magazines, outlook, dress codes, and cultural references. If you can identify with a surfer as a surfer, you and your message will be better received than if you come off as a stranger to the community.
And on the flip side, if your message violates that self-image or tribal codes, you’re chance of making the sale typically drops to zero.
So you tell me, what’s wrong with this ad:
Not sure?
Well, ask yourself how many 50-60 year old Baby Boomers wish to self-identify as “seniors.”
And how likely are you to unintentionally insult them by calling them that?
Now this is an Australian Ad, so I’m hesitant to use the word “Boomer” instead of Senior, since “Boomer” is also Australian slang for large male kangaroo, but I still think that would be preferable to “Senior.”
And I’m fairly certain that Baby Boomers much more readily self-identify with “Boomer” than “Senior”
Bottom Line: In your efforts at using Facebook’s astonishing ability to target ads, make sure your MESSAGING and Word Choice is as targeted as your ads.
