I appreciate it’s a universal phrase. One that has shown up in client briefs and agency proposals, since communications began.
But what was once a totally logical use of words to describe the people a brand wants to be relevant to, is now grossly outdated.
Without wanting to go too far down an etymology rabbit hole, the term ‘audience’ comes from the Latin ‘audentia’ which is the act of listening.
The dictionary (depending on which one you look at) also defines an audience as ‘a group of spectators’.
These blatant connotations of passivity are the reason I take umbrage with talking about the ‘target audience’ in 2024.
This is because, more than ever, individuals are shaping culture and defining narratives.
An evolved media landscape has eroded old hierarchies and democratised influence. Consumers are creators, influencers, storytellers and critics and they are anything but passive when it comes to interacting with the world around them.
The region’s youthful demographic positions the Middle East as a pioneer in trends towards social fragmentation, perpetuating the rise of sub-cultures.
Individualism is fueling collectivism and it’s this shared sense of identity and coming together over common experiences, passions or causes, that influence whether an idea makes it out of (or in) the group chat. And, with WhatsApp the most popular social media platform in the UAE, the group chat’s power over decision making cannot be ignored. Brands, take note!
We talk a lot about ‘community’ when it comes to social media. It might just be the most popular word on my LinkedIn feed. Peppered through posts about brands who are capturing the zeitgeist and successfully earning loyal fans who are participatory in their advocacy for a brand.
So, why are we still talking about the ‘target audience’ when it comes to PR?
Audience is stale. It’s focused on collectivism but in the wrong way. In a way that groups people together, standardising their habits and undermining their sway.
Community is complex, it’s authentic and it’s got a heartbeat. It encourages us to delve deeper. To get to the crux of what actually matters to people, why it matters to them and how they behave as a result.
It forces us to step out from behind research reports and work with brands to get on the inside of communities, to understand how they live and the nuances.
If we’re to truly capture attention for brands, and keep it, now is the time to retire ‘audience targeting’ and focus on community targeting. It’s the only way brands will be able to participate with authenticity, add genuine value and earn a place in people’s lives.
By Sophia Boudjemaa, Business Director – Strategy & Insights, MSL.
