It’s the digital age, and shouting your brand message into the void wastes resources with declining returns. Just envision introducing a brand-new product to sales, collapsing to crickets, or producing material nobody reads. Frustrating, right? In this information overload age, attention is our most valuable currency. And to capture that attention, you need to stop mass marketing and start meaningful connections.
The solution? Stop worrying about getting millions of collaborators on the first day. So forget about building an MVA (Minimum Viable Audience). Your MVA (Most Valuable Audience) is the brand’s proper following at its center, the utmost interest for everything your brand stands for, including the values and motivation of your brand, the small number of people you want to be responding to you, and in real-time. These are not vanity metrics; this is about laying the foundation for sustainable scale.
Minimum Viable Audience (MVA): Quality Over Quantity
But before we begin the process, let’s set the groundwork for a Minimum Viable Audience (MVA). The phrase “Minimum Viable” can feel restrictive, though it’s one of the most empowering things. So read on for strategies that will help you build an audience more quickly for your work in the world. More like this: Instead of trying to fill an arena, you’re trying to fill a snug, engaged room with your tribe.
Your MVA is a niche audience and not just any audience. These are individuals who:
- Tell the story of your brand values and mission: They support what you are about and are aligned with your beliefs.
- Need or want your product or service: Your product helps fix a problem or fills the client’s desire.
- Interested: They want to know more, participate in conversations, and join your community.
- Potential early adopters and brand advocates: They are keen to experiment and are happy to speak to others about your brand.
The key here is viability. You need a large enough audience to get valuable feedback, a handful of sales (or traction), and a foundation to grow from. It is not about trying to reach as many people as possible; it is about targeting the right people, those who are most likely to convert into future customers and contribute to the sustainability of your brand.
Your Ideal MVA: Target Audience Development Strategies
Now that we know why an MVA is essential, the following key step is defining your ideal MVA. This is where the implantation of target audience development strategies comes into play. Understand who you are trying to reach and build an audience around what you do. The careful work involves extensive research and deliberate reflection to identify the people most likely to become your brand evangelists.
Here is a structural approach to your ideal MVA:
Research Your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)
Dig deeper than demographics. Start by creating a comprehensive profile of your ideal customer. Consider:
- Demographics: Age, gender, location, income, education, occupation.
- Psychographics: lifestyle, values, interests, personality, attitude, beliefs, aspirations.
- Pain Points and Challenges: What are they struggling with? What are their pain points and unfulfilled desires?
- Goals and Aspirations: What do they want to achieve? What are their wants and dreams?
- Online Behavior: This is how they relate to and spend their time online. What social media channels do they engage with? What blogs and websites do they read? What do they read/view/consume?
Identify Relevant Niches And Subcultures
Digging into more general demographics, identify niches and subcultures that fit your brand. These are often deep engagement communities where you can discover concentrated pockets of your MVA.
- Online Communities: Forums, groups on social media platforms, and subreddits.
- Offline: Meetups, clubs, industry events, local organizations.
- Influencers and Thought Leaders: Look for people who already command the attention of your target audience within these niches.
Map The Customer Journey
This tool helps you understand your ideal customer’s journey before, during, and after interacting with your brand. It enables you to map out potential touchpoints to engage them and cultivate relationships.
- Awareness: How do they hear about the problems your product solves? Where do they turn to get information?
- Consideration Stage: What do they look for while considering their solutions? What information do you need from them to make your decision?
- Decision Stage: What finally makes them hit the buy button? Who do they trust to recommend something?
- Post-Purchase Stage: What will keep them engaged and an advocate for you?
Iterate And Refine
Your MVA definition is not a one-off. You will revisit and revise it as you learn more about your audience and your business evolves. Monitor your audience through analytics, receive feedback, and modify your strategies.
Visual Suggestion: A graphic or image of an ideal customer profile template or worksheet using the categories as the data fields: (Demographics, Psychographics, Pain Points, Goals, Online Behavior).
Strategies To Attract Your MVA: MVA For Business Growth
Now that you have a clear picture of your Ideal MVA, the next step is to get them interested in your brand. Here are some actionable tips for attracting an MVA to scale your business. Remember that the purpose is not to get anyone to look in your direction; instead, you want to attract the attention of prospective community members.
Here are some surefire strategies to entice your MVA:
Content Marketing Focused On MVA Needs
This means making useful, pertinent, and steady content that serves and addresses the pain points, advantages, and objectives of your MVA.
- Blog Posts are long-form content such as articles, tutorials, listicles, and opinion pieces that add value and position you as an expert in your industry.
- Social Media Content: Compelling posts, stories, videos, and interactive media explicitly tailored to the platforms your MVA uses.
- Videos: Educational videos, product demos, behind-the-scenes glimpses, and interviews with someone likely to resonate with your audience
- Podcasts: industry interviews, discussions, and insights relevant to your sector and MVA’s interests
- Infographics and Visuals: Visually impactful content that summarizes facts and figures in an easily digestible way.
- Lead Magnets: Offering free eBooks, checklists, templates, webinars, etc., and inputting details in exchange for the resource attracts interested individuals to your flora.
Community Involvement
Give back to the niche communities your MVA belongs to, both online and offline (e.g., forums, Discord channels).
- Get active on relevant online forums and groups: Participate in discussions, answer questions, and share your knowledge (without excessive promotion)
- Attend industry events and meetups: Meet and network with active people in your niche, build rapport based on event connections, and share your brand.
- Embrace niche influencers: Work with influencers and thought leaders who capture the attention of your MVA. These may include guest posts, social media shoutouts, joint webinars, or product reviews.
Targeted Ads
Use paid ad platforms to focus on your MVA.
- Social Media Ads (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, etc.
- SEM (Search Engine Marketing): Advertise on search engines (for example, Google) and reach customers searching for terms relevant to your product or service.
- Niche Advertising Networks: Check to see if there are sites, blogs, and podcasts that have become popular in your MVA’s niche.
- Retargeting: Bring back to the site visitors interested in your brand but did not convert.
Public Relations And Media Outreach (Niche-Focused)
You can find mentions of your brand in niche publications, podcasts, and media outlets that your MVA consumes.
- Write Guest Posts: Write articles for relevant websites and blogs.
- Appear on Podcasts: Acquaint the selected MVA on podcasts they listen to.
- Press Releases (Niche): Niche media outlets are excellent avenues for sending relevant press releases announcing new products, initiatives, or brand stories that resonate with their audience.
Referral Programs
Ask your current MVA members to refer candidates who would be a good fit.
- Provide incentives for referrals: Give rewards or discounts to both the referrer and the referred.
- Keep the referral process simple: Create a simple one with easy instructions for sharing the referral.
Measuring MVA Success and Iteration: Data-Driven Growth
It is not a set-it-and-forget-it strategy. It needs to be tracked, measured, and iterated. Data and a willingness to use it to understand what is and is not working, also part of the MVA process, are key to maximizing the impact of your MVA efforts. This section describes essential metrics for measuring MVA success and approaches to using data to sustain growth in the long term.
Key MVA Metrics To Track
This includes MVC metrics that tell you how healthy/engaged your MVA is.
- Targeted: Track the MVA segments of your audience to see if you are attracting the wrong type of audience.
- Engagement Metrics: Website traffic, social media engagement (likes, comments, and shares), email open and click-through rates, and community participation (P3 forum posts and group activity).
- Conversion Rates (MVA Segment): See how your MVA segments convert to leads, buyers, and repeat customers.
- MVA CLTV: Approach the long-term view of the value of customers acquired from your MVA efforts.
- Brand advocacy metrics, including social shares, mentions, testimonials, and referrals from their most valuable advocate (MVA).
- Feedback Volume & Sentiment: Measure the feedback you get from your MVA and analyze the sentiment (negative, positive, neutral).
Analytics Tools And Dashboards
Analytics tools are used to gather MVA data and show it graphically.
- Website Analytics (Google Analytics, etc.): Monitor the number of people using your website, what they do on it, and how often they convert.
- Social Media Analytics (e.g., platform-specific tools and social listening tools): These tools track social media engagement, reach, and sentiment.
- Email marketing analytics (Mailchimp, ConvertKit, etc.): Monetization stats, email open rates, and subscriber growth.
- CRM (Customer Relationship Management) Systems: Manage customer data, track interactions, and analyze customer behavior.
- Community Platform Analytics (Facebook Groups Insights, Forum Analytics): Track community activity, member engagement, and content performance.
- Data Dashboards (Google Data Studio, Tableau): Build dedicated dashboards for MVA & MVA initiatives reporting in a cohesive, centralized, and easier-to-leverage way.
Routine Performance Review And Reporting
Create a routine for assessing MVA performance and creating reports.
- Weekly or Monthly Performance Reviews: Analyze the key metrics, look for trends, and measure your progress towards your MVA rewards.
- MVA Quarterly Reports: Prepare reports outlining MVA performance at each quarter to provide insights into successes, challenges, and areas for improvement.
- MVA data and insights huddles with the team: Use the data as a discussion point for your team to broaden the discussion and iterate ideas together.
A/B Testing And Experimentation
Constantly A/B test and experiment with various MVA strategies to boost performance.
- A/B Testing with Content Formats and Messaging: Use different types of content, headlines, and calls to action to understand what resonates the most with your MVA.
- Experiment with Engagement Tactics: Wear out every community activity, communication style, and exclusive offers to determine what maximizes engagement
- Ad test on target, ads attributes: Try to reach a different kind of customers with ads target; ensure to run a different type of ad attributes for better returns
Iterate And Adapt Based On Data
Use the data from your MVA to make changes and improvements to your MVA.
- Focus on Underperformers: Based on data, identify underperforming MVA initiatives.
- Revise Strategies with Data: Use data-driven insights to tailor your content, engagement techniques, and outreach initiatives accordingly.
- Optimize, Optimize, Optimize: Use an MVA mentality of constant improvement and refine your MVA tactics based on how they are continually performing.
By taking a data-driven approach to measuring MVA success and creating iterations of your strategies, you ensure that your efforts work and improve continuously. In a world of endless channels, this commitment to measurement and optimization is the secret sauce to unlocking your MVA’s potential and driving sustainable brand growth through data. Remember that developing strategies for the target audience is not a one-time activity; it must grow alongside your audience and company.
Conclusion: Building Your Brand With Your MVA
An MVA is not a shortcut to success but a long-term strategy to build a sustainable brand. It’s about unlocking the power of genuine connection on the way to moving the needle—not on broadcasting to the masses. Focusing on your MVA, attraction methods, and engaging with the audience you create will propel your brand higher than any other method or doorway available.
It is important to note that your MVA is not your following or your customers; they are simply your early adopters and potential brand ambassadors, the key to your long-term success. These people will give you some of the most beneficial feedback, help you get your name out in the world, and loyally stay with you even during the hard times. A strong MVA means louder word of mouth, credibility, and potentially repeat customers and even die-hard fans.
A data-driven content strategy is essential for growth marketing success, enabling brands to create targeted, high-performing content, by leveraging insights from Performance Marketing and optimizing with SEO Growth Sessions, businesses can maximize their content ROI, for deeper learning, explore these resources on data-driven strategies and analytics techniques,
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