When it comes to marketing, picking the right channels feels like an endless game of whack-a-mole. Every year, there’s a new “must-try” platform promising infinite growth, and every marketing guru has an opinion on where you absolutely need to be. The truth? Most of them are just guessing, speaking to their audience—or worse, trying to sell you something.
So how do you actually figure out the right marketing channels for your business? Not just the ones that are trendy, but the ones that will truly move the needle?
Understand Your Audience
I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve seen businesses build entire marketing strategies around vague personas like “Susan, 35, enjoys yoga and green smoothies.” That’s not useful. Real audience research goes beyond surface-level demographics. You need to understand:
- What problems they’re trying to solve
- How they search for solutions
- What motivates them to make a decision
- What influences their buying process
- What barriers or hesitations they have before purchasing
I once worked with a company that sold ergonomic office chairs. If we had only focused on people explicitly searching for ‘ergonomic chairs,’ we would have been stuck in a highly competitive, narrow market. But when we reframed the audience as people struggling with back pain, improving home office setups, or looking for long-term health benefits while working, we unlocked a much larger and more engaged customer base. That shift allowed us to tap into content marketing around posture improvement, influencer partnerships with physiotherapists, and community-driven discussions in productivity forums—channels we wouldn’t have considered otherwise.
But understanding your audience doesn’t stop at a one-time exercise. People change. The way they consume information evolves. If you’re not continuously revisiting your audience insights, you’re likely relying on outdated assumptions that don’t reflect reality anymore. That’s why ongoing research is just as important as the initial discovery phase.
Talk to Real Customers
This is one of my favorite things to do. I love having real conversations with customers because there’s nothing more valuable than hearing directly from the people you’re trying to reach.
Once you’ve defined your audience, the next step is to actually talk to them. I know, groundbreaking. But most marketers don’t do this well because they ask the wrong questions. If you simply ask, “Do you use TikTok?” they might say yes, but that doesn’t tell you if they actively use it or just opened the app once last month.
Better questions to ask:
- Where did you first hear about [product/service]?
- When you realized you had this problem, where did you look for solutions?
- What websites, platforms, or influencers do you regularly follow?
- How do you typically make a purchasing decision?
- What factors make you trust a brand before purchasing?
- What’s an example of a brand you’ve discovered recently? How did you find them?
- What type of content do you consume the most (blogs, videos, podcasts, etc.)?
- Are you part of any communities or forums? If so, which ones?
You’ll start noticing patterns in where people get their information and what influences them. That’s where you should be focusing your marketing efforts.
One mistake I see too often is marketers relying on indirect data alone—things like website analytics and social media metrics—without actually speaking to customers. Data can tell you what’s happening, but it won’t tell you why. The best insights come from combining both qualitative and quantitative research.
Research Similar Brands (Not Just Competitors)
It’s tempting to look at competitors and copy their marketing strategy. The problem? If you’re just replicating what they do, you’re always a step behind. Instead, look at brands with a similar target audience, pricing model, or purchase journey—whether they’re in your industry or not.
Ways to do this:
- Use tools like Similarweb or Ahrefs to analyze traffic sources
- Read case studies about how other businesses have grown
- Tap into industry communities to see what’s working for others
- Join webinars, conferences, and marketing groups to hear first-hand strategies
- Network with marketers in similar industries to exchange insights
A lot of marketers make the mistake of fixating only on their direct competition. But if you expand your research to adjacent industries, you can uncover fresh strategies and channels your competitors haven’t even thought about yet. This is especially useful when trying to enter a new market or test an emerging platform.
I once tried a brand-new marketing channel after hearing about it at a conference. It didn’t pan out, but the experiment cost almost nothing, and now I know it’s not worth pursuing. That’s the value of looking beyond direct competitors—you might find something new before everyone else does.
Analyze Your Existing Data (Or Use Industry Benchmarks If You’re New)
If you already have marketing efforts in place, you’re sitting on valuable data. Which channels are bringing in the best leads or customers? Which ones are a waste of money? Even if you’re starting from scratch, you can look at industry benchmarks to get a sense of what works.
Some key questions to ask:
- What’s working well (and why)?
- What’s underperforming despite effort?
- Are there any clear patterns in high-performing traffic sources?
- Do we see higher engagement in specific content formats?
- How does customer acquisition cost (CAC) vary by channel?
- Which channels drive the most repeat customers versus one-time buyers?
- Are certain channels leading to more engaged users in the long run?
For example, I’ve seen brands spend thousands on Facebook Ads with little return, only to realize that most of their best customers were coming from organic search and referrals. Understanding what’s already working (or not) helps you focus on high-potential areas instead of throwing money into a black hole.
Balance Linear Channels and Loops
Not all marketing channels work the same way. Some are linear—meaning you put in effort and get predictable, one-time results. Others create loops—self-sustaining mechanisms that keep driving growth without constant input.
Linear channels:
- Paid ads
- PR campaigns
- Influencer partnerships
- Direct sales outreach
Loops:
- Referral programs
- SEO/content marketing
- Viral product features (e.g., users inviting friends)
- Community-driven growth (e.g., user-generated content, discussion forums)
- Paid loops (where ad revenue funds reinvestment into more ads)
The best marketing strategies include a mix of both. Linear channels help you get traction quickly, while loops create long-term, scalable growth. If your only strategy is dumping money into ads, you’re setting yourself up for an expensive future.
The key to making loops work is ensuring there’s a reinforcing mechanism. A referral program isn’t a loop unless customers are consistently inviting new people. SEO isn’t a loop unless the content keeps bringing in traffic and improving rankings over time. The best loops are designed with sustainability in mind.
Final Thoughts
Finding the right marketing channels isn’t about blindly chasing trends, nor is it about copying what others are doing and hoping for the best. It’s about being intentional—understanding who your audience is, where they actually are, and what influences them to take action. That requires continuous learning, testing, and adapting, rather than relying on a static strategy.
One of the biggest mistakes I see marketers make is treating channels as a one-time decision. Just because something worked last year doesn’t mean it will work next year. Platforms change, algorithms evolve, and consumer behavior shifts. The best marketing teams stay ahead by thinking long-term while also keeping an eye out for emerging opportunities.
Another thing to keep in mind: just because a channel isn’t delivering immediate results doesn’t mean it’s failing. Some channels, like SEO or community-building, take time to pay off but can create powerful compounding effects. Others, like paid ads, can provide instant traffic but may not be sustainable without continuous investment. The key is to balance both.
At the end of the day, successful marketing is about smart decision-making, not guesswork. So, before jumping into a new channel, ask yourself: does this align with how my audience discovers and engages with brands? Can I commit to it long enough to see meaningful results? And most importantly—does it help me build momentum, not just short-term wins?
