Stop Copying Everyone Else: How to Actually Find Your Target Audience

A Female Founder's Guide to Getting Specific without Freaking the F*ck Out

Hey there, Erin here!

This week’s blog is all about your target audience, and why most business owners (including me get it wrong.)

Reminder: This month is all about the basics, I graduated with my Master’s of Science in Entrepreneurship, and I’m teaching you everything you need to know without the student loans and a little mindfulness in mind. This section was such a lightbulb moment for me, especially when it comes to that sneaky habit of trying to do what everyone else is doing.

Truth drop: Who might buy your product or service is very different than who is likely to buy your product or service.

Aaaand case in point: Harley-Davidson just lost $18M betting their target audience wanted electric bikes. They only sold a total of 55 bikes in the second quarter of 2025. OUCH. This is why your business strategy has to start with understanding your customer, not what every other company is doing.

After 10 + years of being an entrepreneur, getting my master's, and having multiple different businesses, there are some key fundamentals that I need to be reminded of ALL the time:

YOUR TARGET MARKET IS NOT YOUR TARGET AUDIENCE.

& YOUR AUDIENCE IS NOT THEIR AUDIENCE.

I honestly think all this jargon gets so confusing for business owners. Between your customer profile, customer persona, target audience, and target market, it all gets confusing AF.

Before you freak out and stop reading because you have no idea wtf I’m talking about, don’t worry…I’m going to break it down.

The Big Mistake I Made with My Yoga Studio Business

Picture this, you’ve been feeling like your biz needs some sort of marketing or creative boost when it comes to social media or even launching a new product. So, you do what everyone does now…you head straight to Instagram for inspiration.

THAT RIGHT THERE. This is what I mean, let’s keep going, but use a real-life example…

The studio I owned and operated for over 7 years was YESyoga.

YESyoga was an infrared-heated yoga studio located in Sugar Land Town Square. We were primarily a vinyasa-style studio, but offered a multitude of classes that focused on fundamental and foundational yoga movements.

Here was our original value proposition:

YESyoga is a luxury yoga studio

Um, lol, not wrong, but not great.

However, let’s take it back to last week and use our value prop formula:

[BUSINESS NAME] helps [WHO] do/solve [WHAT] so they can [RESULT].

YESyoga helps everyday women in Sugar Land move their bodies with intention and purpose via yoga and lifestyle practices, so they can show up more courageously, know their worth, and feel strong in body, mind, and spirit in their everyday lives.

…it’s a little wordy, but WAY BETTER because…

We missed something BIG with our original value proposition: THE WHO.

We’d say something vague like, “Women ages 20–55 who want to do yoga.” That’s meaningless.

Like many local small businesses, there was another major thing we forgot…we were a HYPER LOCAL business. Our clients/customers are within a 5-mile radius (if not even closer to 2 miles.) It’s not just any woman between the ages of 20-55, it’s actually a specific type of woman, located within Sugar Land or the surrounding area, who is struggling with stress, back pain, need of community, or finding a yoga studio where they fit in. These women want to make less decisions, feel less stressed, sleep better, feel stronger in their body and mind, and feel welcomed and worthy, but they struggle with finding the time, balancing their other workout routines, and understanding the basics of yoga.

YESyoga was NOT for everyone, and you shouldn’t be either.

The Trap Founders Fall Into: Comparison

However, when we discussed our marketing strategies or social media strategies, we didn’t ever even think to consider the fact that our clients were all within about 2 miles from the yoga studio. We’d look at other studios to see what classes they were offering, we were focusing on trends, or we would look at what the best studios were offering or doing.

While yes, you should definitely do best practices and have somewhat of an eye on the best in the biz, THAT audience is NOT our audience, and it’s NOT your audience either.

Even if you are an e-commerce company that sells all over the world, your customer is NOT everyone.

The comparison trap of “maybe I should do that too” is a trap many, many founders fall into, and it’s a forever practice and struggle of making sure we aren’t all in the same trap together.

In life and in biz, perfectionism and comparison trap strikes again. F*ck.

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The Biz Jargon (Made Simple)

Let’s cut through some of the bullsh*t jargon that confuses so many of us when it comes to key terms for the Target Audience:

Target Audience: The Specific group of people, defined by characteristics like demographics and behaviors, who are most likely to be interested in and benefit from a product, service, or message.

Target Market: People who share the same characteristics (age, gender, location, income) that make them likely to be interested in your product or service. It’s the overall group that the business wants to target or attract.

*Note: Remember we missed a HUGE part of the target audience by leaving out the WHERE portion of the demographic data. Always use LOCATION if you’re local-focused.

Demographics might include:

• Age

• Gender

• Occupation

• Location

• Lifestyle & Interests

Customer Behavior might include:

• Purchase history & frequency of usage

• Email Marketing & Open Rates

• Website Interactions

Customer Motivations (AKA What are they searching for?) might include:

• Conveneience

• Value

• Status

Your Target Audience Formula:

Here’s got to get specific:

[BUSINESS NAME] serves [SPECIFIC PERSON] who is [SITUATION/IDENTITY] and wants [DESIRED RESULT], but struggles with [REAL OBSTACLE].

• Specific person = Niched down beyond gender and age

• Situation/Identitfy = What’s happenin in their life or biz right now?

• Desired result = What do they actually want?

• Real Obstacle = What’s stopping them?

Example:

YESyoga serves busy professional women in Sugar Land who want to feel stronger and less stressed, but struggle with finding time and confidence in a yoga studio setting.

Reality Inventory: The Target Check-In

Are you speaking to your actual audience or just trying to impress everyone?

Step 1: Brain Dump

Answer the following:

• Who am I writing for lately? Is it my dream client, my peers, myself, or am I just duplicating that bad*ss business owner?

• Where am I holding back because I don’t want to “lose reach”?

• Who would I love to serve if I weren’t afraid of losing followers or sales?

Step 2: The Awareness

Which of these apply to me (if not all)

• Someone else is growing faster, and I want what they have

• I feel like I need a different market to be “taken seriously.”

• I don’t want to exclude anyone (even if I know it’s watering down my message)

• I don’t feel clear on what my current audience actually wants

• I’ve pivoted, but my content and copy haven’t caught up

Step 3: Ground Yourself in your RIGHT audience.

Ask yourself:

• What if I doubled down on the right-fit audience instead of the biggest one?

• How does it feel when I speak directly to those people?

• What if I built for depth instead of just reach?

Step 4: Take Action

What’s one thing you can do right now to move towards serving your actual audience more powerfully and intentionally?

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FINAL THOUGHTS

Your target audience is not “everyone.” It’s a specific group of people who are most likely to buy from you, resonate with you, and stay loyal to you.

Next week, I’m sharing a small-but-powerful move I just made around audience segmentation, and why it’s already making a difference.

Until then, remember: You’re not here to impress the biggest crowd. You’re here to connect with the right one.

You’re courageous, you’re capable, and you’re strong.