Whether you are newly entering the US Market or have been here for years, trying to increase brand awareness is the key to capturing more of the market. Before you can do that, it’s essential that you have an acute understanding of the individuals making the buying decisions for your product or service. Equally important, is understanding the US Market and how it differs from the markets you are already serving. Disclaimer: The advice in this blog post is particularly for business-to-business (B2B) companies, but some of the tips could still apply to businesses that sell directly to consumers (B2C).
Understanding Your Ideal Customer
Your ideal customer profile (ICP) is a theoretical depiction of the type of customer or company that is most likely to benefit from your product or service based on common attributes. It can include detailed demographical information, behavioral traits, company needs and pain points. Depending on the types of businesses and industries served, you might have more than one customer profile. You may start with one broad profile and add more for specific products or verticals. As time goes on, you will continue to refine your ICPs based on what you learn about your customers and key market shifts.
You will use each ICP to create targeted marketing content, making the information more effective and focused on the customers that you want to attract. Define Your Ideal Customer Profile with our worksheet now.
Here are a few ways you can get to know your ideal customer:
- Research your competitors. See what they have in common with you, who they sell to, and which products are popular.
- Initiate customer surveys to those who have already purchased from you.
- Set-up Google Analytics (GA4) to identify website users and which products or pages are most popular.
- Use Google’s Keyword Planner to see which industry keywords get the most clicks, which regions they are rank most popular, and what other producers are bidding on those same keywords.
Understanding The Market
In-house marketing may be the first step to getting your product or service to the marketplace. Partnering with an agency, however, provides access to end-to-end capabilities at a fraction of the cost versus an internal team. An agency can help you achieve market share goals and accelerate earning revenue more efficiently because they have the tools, know-how, and experience needed to make it happen. Similarly, as a small to mid-size company, you may need marketing support, but not a full-time marketing department.
For companies that are looking to enter or expand in another country, it’s even more important to work with an agency that understands your particular market. From established relationships and knowing the cultural nuances to years of industry experience and regional proximity, an agency can be your lifeline and competitive advantage. Check our blog about the differences between Europe and the US that can have an effect on how you (should or should not) market your brand.
Generating brand awareness can be distilled down to getting your brand, messages, and services in front of as many of the right people as possible. There isn’t just one tried and true method that works better than the other, so it’s important to try several options, learn from the data, apply your findings, and try more new approaches. When you find something that works, stick with it. Then, add more strategies as you learn and grow. There are countless possibilities. Working through an agency that has experience in your target market can help you use your marketing dollars most effectively.
Once you understand your market, and target customers, you are ready for part 2 of US Market Entry which is knowing how to reach them. There are a few different channels in the B2B space, and each of them has its quirks and best practices. The rest of the blog will focus on these.
If you are a B2B company, the use of LinkedIn is very common, especially in the US. If you already have a LinkedIn account for your business, make sure you have it translated into English, to help the US audience to be more open to having a conversation.
To really take advantage of the basic LinkedIn platform, it’s best to increase the size of your network, and therefore your visibility. Connecting with industry leaders, strategic partners, current customers, vendors and suppliers, etc… will all help with your ultimate goal of connecting with your target audience. One way to do this is through custom, automated, one-to-one messaging campaigns. If you have not done this before, it’s best to consult with someone who has so that you stay within LinkedIn’s guidelines.
LinkedIn can be used for both inbound and outbound marketing. In terms of inbound marketing, post company news and interesting industry facts to keep connections “in the know.” Also, a very powerful type of LinkedIn post is thought leadership, show prospects and customers that you are a source of knowledge in your industry, building trust and inciting them to purchase from you.
Outbound marketing comes into play through direct messaging on the platform. You can contact the people that you want to hire or do business with easily, and without needing to have their email address. If you choose to pay for premium versions of LinkedIn, such as Sales Navigator, you’ll also get extra perks. One of the most important benefits of the Sales Navigator tool is its business and people filters. This allows you to narrow down your target audience to reflect companies and individuals that are most likely to engage. Filters by industry, size of company, location and more are available.
Although the email laws in the US are quite lax (except for California) getting someone’s attention through email is much harder than in other countries. With the high spam rates in the US, people with email are already accustomed to ignoring emails from people or companies that they don’t know, making cold outreach much more difficult. That being said, email is still a good choice for B2B outreach…if you know what to say. The best way to see results is by personalizing your messaging to a niche group.
You can do this by segmenting a list of specifically targeted prospects and reaching out with focus on a niche segment of this group. For example, you could include, only VP’s of Marketing in the tech industry, working for a company worth under $70 million. In this case, you can be pretty specific in the messaging without needing to write an email for each individual, allowing for creation of segmentation and automation. Customers typically respond well to customized messaging which can significantly improve your chances of being noticed in the US.
When creating niche email lists you will need to go through a period of trial and error, mixing and matching different characteristics and copy, until you find the right combination and start getting prospect attention.
Digital Ads
Some companies may be reluctant to invest in advertising because they are under the impression that it won’t deliver tangible results. However, the number of times that a prospective buyer engages with your ad, is not necessarily indicative of its impact on your sales. A better way to gauge if the ad is doing well, is by measuring how many impressions it received. Even if someone doesn’t click on your ad, you’ve created awareness, which improves recognition of brand (who you are or what product/service you offer). In an organic search, they are much more likely to click your link on the results page, now that they recognize your name.
Although ads don’t often get as many clicks as they do impressions, clicks you do get are very valuable. Not only do they indicate interest, depending on the platform, each click can tell you a great deal of information like where your ad appeared, when they clicked it, and demographics like geographic location, industry or seniority level.
Google Ads are a great method, but social media platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, or X, may also be good channels to consider depending on where your key demographic consumes their information. Most of these only charge by click, so in terms of impressions, it’s a high-value deal. From our experience, we recommend at least a $2000 ad spend with any single platform for 8-12 weeks to really start seeing results. Below that budget, the campaign typically does not produce significant engagement, and going much higher as a starting point can be superfluous.
Industry-Specific Publications
Maximize your marketing budget’s effectiveness by strategically investing in editorial and advertising efforts in publications that directly reach your desired audience. For instance, if your company sells to medical device manufacturers, you may want to advertise in a medical device publication, not in general manufacturing or pharmaceutical publications. Similarly, even if a publication is within the same industry, it may not be beneficial if its primary readership does not align with the level of decision-makers you need to reach. To avoid inefficient spending, ask publications for their demographics to ensure they reach the right audience.
Subscribing to the publication yourself can help you evaluate if the content is relevant to your target audience and determine how well your product or service fits with the overall value the publication provides. When you find a suitable publication, experiment with various advertising options such as print ads, digital ad space, website promotions, or newsletter sponsorships to see which produces the greatest ROI. Once you identify the most effective ad formats, collaborate with your representative to develop a longer-term package that includes these formats, often with discounts and/or bonus content for committing to multiple ads.
Conclusion
Entering the US with improved marketing can be summed up into two phases. One is understanding your ICP and your market. This means taking time to do research and test the validity of your findings. Afterward, focus on picking the best channels to reach your customers and what you need to say to get their attention. This is mostly trial and error.
If you need help with marketing in another country, working with professionals who know the country’s demographics and industrial landscape can save you money in the long run, compared to when you spend months on testing and money when trying to figure it out on your own. Working with an agency is also a great solution for those that need marketing help but don’t want to hire a full time marketing team. Contact us to find out how we can boost your organization today!