I think I’m starting to get the hang of this creator thing. I’m having a blast developing content for you weekly and diving into everything that’s happening on the creator front through near daily threads on my Twitter and deeper dives on each week right in your inbox.

I’ve been experimenting a lot to find the rhythm of what piques your interest so that I can keep delivering it to you. So, I wanna know – have you enjoyed the shift so far? Do you wanna see more of a specific type of content? I know my music folks want some more artist-specific stuff, and I’m working on it. For everyone else, please free to respond right to this email.

Now to the good stuff. This week, let’s talk about:

• How to identify your target audience

• How to build content once you figure it out

• Key things I have my eye on this week in the Creator Economy

How to Find Your People (Identifying Target Audience)

Audience has always been important. As a creator, you know this. Most of us have had ‘audience’ and ‘consumer’ drilled into our heads as interchangeable ideals since YouTube burst onto the scene way back when shifting the idea of audience from the group of people who attend shows, watch movies, and tune in weekly to their favorite televisions shows to everyone on the internet.

In the third installment of our Creator Market Fit Series, I’m breaking down the essential pillars to help you find success as a creator. In past editions, we’ve outlined what Creator Market fit is and why you need to understand it. In today’s newsletter, we will focus on the crucial first step of defining CMF for yourself: Identifying Your Target Audience.

Understanding who your audience is and what they want is key to creating art that resonates with them and keeps them coming back for more. There are three key aspects of identifying your target audience and finding your people: Demographics (who they are), Psychographics (what they want), and Consumption Habits (how they like to receive it).

 Understand Who They Are

Demographics, or ‘demos’ for short, are the basic characteristics of the people receiving your product. Things like age, gender, location, education, and even what they do for a living play into the development of this. Gaining insight into these factors allows you to create content that appeals directly to a specific group of people, making it more relevant and engaging.

To gather demos, consider:

• Studying successful creators in your niche and observing their audience.

• Surveying your audience to gather data directly from your followers or potential audience.

• Using social media analytics and insights to gain an understanding of your current audience’s needs.

It can be as simple as asking a series of questions to gather feedback like the ones I asked at the start of this newsletter or putting together more in-depth polls that require some time and effort.

Figure Out What They Want

While demographics provide a general overview of your audience, psychographics delves deeper into their interests, values, preferences, and lifestyles. Understanding these aspects can help you create content that aligns with their passions and aspirations, ultimately forging a deeper connection with your audience.

To explore psychographics, consider:

• Analyzing comments, messages, and reviews from your audience to understand their preferences and values.

• Identify common themes, messages, or emotions that resonate with your target audience.

• Observing trends and popular culture to gain insight into the interests and values of your potential audience.

Deliver It To Them Consistently 

Analyzing your audience's consumption habits will give you a better understanding of how they discover, experience, and interact with art. This information can guide your decisions on which platforms to use, how to present your work, and what marketing strategies to employ.

To examine consumption habits, consider:

• Investigating where your target audience discovers new things, such as from friends, online platforms, or social media.

• Identifying the formats and mediums your audience prefers, like physical goods, digital, or mixed media.

• Exploring how your audience engages with content, including purchasing habits, sharing on social media, or attending events.

CMF In Action: The Russ Theory

A great example of this in action is how the artist Russ used his fanbase to jumpstart his music career while the rest of the industry overlooked him.

If you’re not familiar with Russ, an independent music artist that has accumulated millions of dollars and streams due to the overwhelming success of his highly engaged fanbase, then this quick breakdown will get you there.

In 2016, Russ had his first Billboard Hot 100 success with the song ‘What They Want’ which peaked at no. 83, but that was song #87 in a journey that had taken him ten years to string together. Before the success of Hot 100 in 2016, Russ had self-produced 10 albums with each one barely making any waves in the industry.

The artist wasn’t focused on appealing to everyone – he was solely focused on figuring out what his audience wanted, so each release was designed in a way to directly target the fanbase he was slowly building.

Russ’s plan is simple: ask fans what they want, then deliver – and that’s what he’s done on nearly every release since his first.

Between 2011 and 2014, he produced 10 studio albums independently before identifying that most of his audience was on Soundcloud. He then began releasing singles weekly for 3 years to engage his audience on their platform of choice and learn things in real time and it worked. The music industry started paying attention because of his audience’s commitment to him.

The result- Creator Market Fit: 12 studio albums, 200 songs released, multiple sold-out tours, independently.

The lesson here is that identifying your target audience is the foundation of achieving Creator Market Fit. By understanding who you're creating art for, you can tailor your work to their preferences, making it more impactful and valuable to them over the lifetime of your relationship.

Creator Pulse

TikTok’s new Music Discovery Hub → This breakdown shows how TikTok is paving the way to become the discovery platform for the music industry’s audience

The Creator Economy Keeps Growing →This Goldman Sachs report predicts Creator Economy growth to top $450B in the next few years. Whether you’re a creator or studio owner, this growth means absolute opportunity ahead.

Janelle Monáe announces new album → Speaking of CMF + artists who understand their audience so well they only create art for them, Janelle is back with a new album and video that’s sure to cause a stir.

 Whenever you're ready, there are 3 ways I can help you:

​​​1. Book a call to work with me directly to scale your creator-led business or high-growth startup to $150K and beyond.
2. Subscribe to my podcast to Grow + Expand Your Mindset alongside 10,000 other creators
3. Promote yourself to 15k+ subscribers by sponsoring this newsletter and podcast (Booking into October 2023)

​​​Love + Light,

​​​LaTecia

​​​Want more? Follow @lateciarising and let me know how I can help you scale as a creator. Want to support this newsletter and get featured? Drop me a line & I’ll be happy to collaborate.