How To Identify Your Ideal Reader

Do you ever wonder who is reading your blog? If not, it might be beneficial for you to find out. It’s become very important to not only find out who is reading your blog, but, to find the correct reading audience for your blog niche. Findableblogs.com has a very in-depth article on ways you can identify your ideal blog reader:

If you’re convinced that you need to create an ideal reader, you’ll be eager to dig into the details. Get a notebook and pen, or use your computer and open up a text editor. Let’s go!

Start with generalities:

Who is your target audience for your product or service? Does it make sense for your ideal reader to be the same?

Thinking about your business goals for your blog, who is the target audience that is most likely to help you reach those goals? For instance, if one of your big goals is three leads a week, then your ideal reader is someone who is your ideal customer, but has increased motivation to take action now. If a big goal is to increase credibility and become known as an expert, your ideal reader might be a person who’s considered an expert among his or her peers and has a lot of connections and influence.

What is your reader’s main motivation to visit your blog? In the first example above, the “ideal customer” is motivated to find a solution to a problem that’s currently causing discomfort or pain. On the other hand, the “connected expert” (in the second example) is more likely looking for interesting information that he can pass on to his circle to enhance their opinion of him and cement his good reputation.

Once you have some general ideas about your ideal reader, start to narrow it down and discover a single person that would read your blog. You might be able to use an existing customer or colleague as your model. Feel free to start writing a bit of a narrative rather than just answering each question individually.

Is your reader male or female? How old?

Is your reader tech-savvy?

Where does your reader currently get the information he/she needs? For instance, talking with people, books, magazines, websites, etc.

Why will this reader care about your blog?

What’s significant about where your reader works, lives, shops, and or/plays?

How knowledgeable is your reader about your topic?

Is your reader reading for personal enrichment or professional development?

Is your reader’s need for your knowledge urgent or curiosity-driven?