/General Questions
Discussion
Stop targeting car people - how to actually find your audience
Posted by
ADMIN
•12/12/2025You found a good product. A real problem. A strong moment.
And then you ruin it by targeting the wrong people.
When most people hear "audience research," they think demographics. Age. Gender. Location. Interests. That's not research. That's decoration.
And it leads to targeting categories. "Car people." "Fitness people." "People interested in skincare."
Here's the problem: Categories don't buy. Moments buy.
When you target a category, you get curiosity. Scrolling. "Maybe later."
When you target people in a moment, you get attention. Urgency. Action.
---
**The rule**
One sentence: The best audience is the group that experiences your moment most often, most intensely, or with the most fear.
Not the biggest audience. Not the most people. Not the most interest.
The smallest group with the highest urgency and the least resistance.
Because the closer someone is to the moment, the less convincing you need to do. And convincing is expensive.
---
**Four filters to find your audience**
Not demographics. Not personas. Filters.
**Filter 1: Proximity to the moment**
This is the most important one. You don't want people who relate to the problem. You want people who are in it. Approaching it. Or just recovering from it.
Example - shoe cleaner.
Bad audience: "People who like sneakers."
Good audience: People with a job interview tomorrow. People going on a first date. People attending an event this weekend.
Same product. Different proximity. One group scrolls. The other pays attention.
Always ask: Who feels this problem now - not eventually?
**Filter 2: Pain awareness**
Some people have a problem and don't care. Others care deeply.
Your best audience already knows something is wrong. They're not waiting for education. They're looking for direction.
Example - posture. Millions have bad posture. But only some are already in pain and frustrated. That's your group. You're not convincing people to care. You're finding people who already do.
**Filter 3: Ability to act**
Some people feel pain but can't act. No money. No authority. No control.
Example - camper owners versus renters. Both face breakdown risk. But owners decide. They don't need permission.
Your best audience can pay, decide quickly, and act alone. Urgency without ability still doesn't convert.
**Filter 4: Identifiability**
If you can't name them, find them, or reach them - they're not your best shot.
Bad audiences: "People who care about safety." "People who want confidence."
Good audiences: Camper owners. RV travelers. Job applicants. Parents of newborns.
You should be able to say where they hang out, what they search, what content they consume. If you can't, targeting becomes guesswork.
---
**Back to the car jack example**
We had a validated product. A real moment. Demand was proven.
But "car people" wasn't the answer.
When we filtered the audience - proximity, pain awareness, ability to act, identifiability - camper owners came out on top.
Closer to the moment. Higher fear. Decision-makers. Easy to find.
Same product. Different audience. Everything changed.
---
**The takeaway**
Audience research is not about finding THE audience. It's about choosing your FIRST audience.
The one where urgency is highest, objections are lowest, and explanation is minimal.
You can always expand later. But you don't start broad. You start sharp.
And then you ruin it by targeting the wrong people.
When most people hear "audience research," they think demographics. Age. Gender. Location. Interests. That's not research. That's decoration.
And it leads to targeting categories. "Car people." "Fitness people." "People interested in skincare."
Here's the problem: Categories don't buy. Moments buy.
When you target a category, you get curiosity. Scrolling. "Maybe later."
When you target people in a moment, you get attention. Urgency. Action.
---
**The rule**
One sentence: The best audience is the group that experiences your moment most often, most intensely, or with the most fear.
Not the biggest audience. Not the most people. Not the most interest.
The smallest group with the highest urgency and the least resistance.
Because the closer someone is to the moment, the less convincing you need to do. And convincing is expensive.
---
**Four filters to find your audience**
Not demographics. Not personas. Filters.
**Filter 1: Proximity to the moment**
This is the most important one. You don't want people who relate to the problem. You want people who are in it. Approaching it. Or just recovering from it.
Example - shoe cleaner.
Bad audience: "People who like sneakers."
Good audience: People with a job interview tomorrow. People going on a first date. People attending an event this weekend.
Same product. Different proximity. One group scrolls. The other pays attention.
Always ask: Who feels this problem now - not eventually?
**Filter 2: Pain awareness**
Some people have a problem and don't care. Others care deeply.
Your best audience already knows something is wrong. They're not waiting for education. They're looking for direction.
Example - posture. Millions have bad posture. But only some are already in pain and frustrated. That's your group. You're not convincing people to care. You're finding people who already do.
**Filter 3: Ability to act**
Some people feel pain but can't act. No money. No authority. No control.
Example - camper owners versus renters. Both face breakdown risk. But owners decide. They don't need permission.
Your best audience can pay, decide quickly, and act alone. Urgency without ability still doesn't convert.
**Filter 4: Identifiability**
If you can't name them, find them, or reach them - they're not your best shot.
Bad audiences: "People who care about safety." "People who want confidence."
Good audiences: Camper owners. RV travelers. Job applicants. Parents of newborns.
You should be able to say where they hang out, what they search, what content they consume. If you can't, targeting becomes guesswork.
---
**Back to the car jack example**
We had a validated product. A real moment. Demand was proven.
But "car people" wasn't the answer.
When we filtered the audience - proximity, pain awareness, ability to act, identifiability - camper owners came out on top.
Closer to the moment. Higher fear. Decision-makers. Easy to find.
Same product. Different audience. Everything changed.
---
**The takeaway**
Audience research is not about finding THE audience. It's about choosing your FIRST audience.
The one where urgency is highest, objections are lowest, and explanation is minimal.
You can always expand later. But you don't start broad. You start sharp.
8 Replies
•12/12/2025
bookmarked. The four filters framework is actually useful unlike most "find your avatar" advice that tells you to imagine their favorite coffee
•12/12/2025
this explains why my pet product failed. I was targeting "dog owners" which is like 50 million people. No moment. No urgency. Just a massive category of people who might someday want something for their dog. Should have targeted people who just adopted a puppy or people dealing with a specific behavior problem
•12/12/2025
when you say start sharp and expand later - how do you know when to expand? Like at what point do you go from camper owners to RV people to all car owners
OP
ADMIN
•12/12/2025When your first audience is profitable and you've maxed out reach. If camper owners are converting at 3% and you're spending $100/day profitably, scale that first. Only expand when you've saturated or when costs rise because frequency is too high. Most people expand too early because they get bored, not because they should
•12/12/2025
the identifiability filter is so obvious but I never thought about it. I've been targeting "people who want better sleep" for weeks. Where do I even find those people? Nowhere specific. But "new parents" or "night shift workers" - I can actually find them and target them
•12/12/2025
tried this with my led strip lights. Was targeting "home decor enthusiasts" getting nothing. Switched to people who just moved into a new apartment (literally searched facebook groups for people posting "just got my keys"). First sale within 2 days. They're in a moment - setting up their new place
•12/12/2025
The ability to act filter is interesting. How do you figure out if someone can actually buy? Like how would you know camper owners have more buying power than renters without just guessing
OP
ADMIN
•12/12/2025It's not about buying power, it's about decision authority. Owners don't need to ask anyone. Renters might need landlord approval or worry about modifications. Same with B2B - a manager can say yes, an employee has to ask. You want people who can pull the trigger alone
OP
ADMIN
•12/12/2025Exactly. PT patients are in a moment. Doctor told them to do exercises. They have a reason to act today not someday. Test that angle and see what happens
•12/12/2025
I've been targeting "fitness enthusiasts" for 3 weeks wondering why my resistance bands aren't selling. This just made me realize I should be targeting people recovering from injuries or people who just started physical therapy. They actually NEED bands right now. Completely different approach