imary research may read something like this: "My typical client is a professional 32 year old female that has at least some college hours and has an average family income of $48,000.00. Her two children are within the ages of eight and ten. She lives in the Waterwell Creek suburban residential area. She regularly surfs the internet to find information regarding her purchases. She seeks massage therapy services to reduce work-place stress and is concerned with keeping healthy and fit. She subscribes to Fitness, Body and Health, and Self-Wellness magazines. She shops at GNC, the Our Local hair/nail salon, and regularly goes to the Let's Get FNo business can be all things to all people. Even though massage therapy would be beneficial for most individuals, everybody is not your target market segment. Instead, you must reach specific customers and satisfy their particular needs. You must identify those customers and understand as precisely as possible what they want.

Now that you know what you have to offer, you must identify your primarily customer through primary research. Primary research is research that's tailored to a company's particular needs. Friends and family who assisted you through your massage therapy school are excellent candidates for this part of research. They will be able to help you to answer these questions:

* Who is it that will benefit the most from what you have offered?

* Which individuals do you primarily meet their needs or wants?

You should also be able to define your customer by:

* Where they live in your community.

* What their basic beliefs, needs, concerns, and goals are.

* What needs or wants are met by your service(s).

* Where your customer generally shops (competitors).

* What his/her life-style habits are.

Secondary research is research based on information gleaned from studies previously performed by government agencies, chambers of commerce, trade associations, and other organizations. You can find this information on the Internet, in local libraries, books, business publications, magazines, and newspapers. The US Census is an excellent resource.

To be effective your target market segment information should also include the following:

* Geographical Concentration - where will you find the largest concentration of your customers?

* Socioeconomic Profile - Income, heritage, cultural values, and assimilation rate into U.S. society.

* Levels of Education / Employment - Educational background, average drop out rate from high school, income potential, barriers to employment. Identifying the unique challenges or concerns of your target market group under these categories will be invaluable in understanding your specific target market and what drives their spending.

Then write a target market profile. Identify who is your primary target market group, where they are located, how do similar products or services reach them, and when do they purchase items such as yours. Having clear and concise answers to these questions will help you to get a clear understanding of your target market segment.

Your target market profile with information from your primary research may read something like this: "My typical client is a professional 32 year old female that has at least some college hours and has an average family income of $48,000.00. Her two children are within the ages of eight and ten. She lives in the Waterwell Creek suburban residential area. She regularly surfs the internet to find information regarding her purchases. She seeks massage therapy services to reduce work-place stress and is concerned with keeping healthy and fit. She subscribes to Fitness, Body and Health, and Self-Wellness magazines. She shops at GNC, the Our Local hair/nail salon, and regularly goes to the Let's Get F

hey will be able to help you to answer these questions:

* Who is it that will benefit the most from what you have offered?

* Which individuals do you primarily meet their needs or wants?

You should also be able to define your customer by:

* Where they live in your community.

* What their basic beliefs, needs, concerns, and goals are.

* What needs or wants are met by your service(s).

* Where your customer generally shops (competitors).

* What his/her life-style habits are.

Secondary research is research based on information gleaned from studies previously performed by government agencies, chambers of commerce, trade associations, and other organizations. You can find this information on the Internet, in local libraries, books, business publications, magazines, and newspapers. The US Census is an excellent resource.

To be effective your target market segment information should also include the following:

* Geographical Concentration - where will you find the largest concentration of your customers?

* Socioeconomic Profile - Income, heritage, cultural values, and assimilation rate into U.S. society.

* Levels of Education / Employment - Educational background, average drop out rate from high school, income potential, barriers to employment. Identifying the unique challenges or concerns of your target market group under these categories will be invaluable in understanding your specific target market and what drives their spending.

Then write a target market profile. Identify who is your primary target market group, where they are located, how do similar products or services reach them, and when do they purchase items such as yours. Having clear and concise answers to these questions will help you to get a clear understanding of your target market segment.

Your target market profile with information from your primary research may read something like this: "My typical client is a professional 32 year old female that has at least some college hours and has an average family income of $48,000.00. Her two children are within the ages of eight and ten. She lives in the Waterwell Creek suburban residential area. She regularly surfs the internet to find information regarding her purchases. She seeks massage therapy services to reduce work-place stress and is concerned with keeping healthy and fit. She subscribes to Fitness, Body and Health, and Self-Wellness magazines. She shops at GNC, the Our Local hair/nail salon, and regularly goes to the Let's Get F

chambers of commerce, trade associations, and other organizations. You can find this information on the Internet, in local libraries, books, business publications, magazines, and newspapers. The US Census is an excellent resource.

To be effective your target market segment information should also include the following:

* Geographical Concentration - where will you find the largest concentration of your customers?

* Socioeconomic Profile - Income, heritage, cultural values, and assimilation rate into U.S. society.

* Levels of Education / Employment - Educational background, average drop out rate from high school, income potential, barriers to employment. Identifying the unique challenges or concerns of your target market group under these categories will be invaluable in understanding your specific target market and what drives their spending.

Then write a target market profile. Identify who is your primary target market group, where they are located, how do similar products or services reach them, and when do they purchase items such as yours. Having clear and concise answers to these questions will help you to get a clear understanding of your target market segment.

Your target market profile with information from your primary research may read something like this: "My typical client is a professional 32 year old female that has at least some college hours and has an average family income of $48,000.00. Her two children are within the ages of eight and ten. She lives in the Waterwell Creek suburban residential area. She regularly surfs the internet to find information regarding her purchases. She seeks massage therapy services to reduce work-place stress and is concerned with keeping healthy and fit. She subscribes to Fitness, Body and Health, and Self-Wellness magazines. She shops at GNC, the Our Local hair/nail salon, and regularly goes to the Let's Get F

high school, income potential, barriers to employment. Identifying the unique challenges or concerns of your target market group under these categories will be invaluable in understanding your specific target market and what drives their spending.

Then write a target market profile. Identify who is your primary target market group, where they are located, how do similar products or services reach them, and when do they purchase items such as yours. Having clear and concise answers to these questions will help you to get a clear understanding of your target market segment.

Your target market profile with information from your primary research may read something like this: "My typical client is a professional 32 year old female that has at least some college hours and has an average family income of $48,000.00. Her two children are within the ages of eight and ten. She lives in the Waterwell Creek suburban residential area. She regularly surfs the internet to find information regarding her purchases. She seeks massage therapy services to reduce work-place stress and is concerned with keeping healthy and fit. She subscribes to Fitness, Body and Health, and Self-Wellness magazines. She shops at GNC, the Our Local hair/nail salon, and regularly goes to the Let's Get F

imary research may read something like this: "My typical client is a professional 32 year old female that has at least some college hours and has an average family income of $48,000.00. Her two children are within the ages of eight and ten. She lives in the Waterwell Creek suburban residential area. She regularly surfs the internet to find information regarding her purchases. She seeks massage therapy services to reduce work-place stress and is concerned with keeping healthy and fit. She subscribes to Fitness, Body and Health, and Self-Wellness magazines. She shops at GNC, the Our Local hair/nail salon, and regularly goes to the Let's Get Fit Gym."

A written paragraph or more that includes this information will allow you to also identify the answers to the following questions.

Your target market profile should tell you:

* Who will purchase your product? 32 professional females

* What similar purchases to your service do they buy? health supplements, hair styling and nails, self-wellness and fitness services

* Why they purchase what they do? interested in health and fitness

* How much are they willing or able to pay? average payment of $58 per one-hour massage

* Where you should advertise? At the health food stores, local hair/nail salons, and the gyms

Knowing this valuable information regarding your primary customers will help you to save time and money in ineffective advertising. This helps you to put your limited resources and funds to work for you in areas that you can be confident that your next customer will see.