If I were you, the first thing I’d do is spend a week just listening. I’d find at least ten people who represent this new customer segment and get them on the phone for unscripted, open-ended conversations about their problems, not my product. Forget surveys or analytics for a minute. The goal here is to hear their exact language and understand their world before you try to sell them anything. Charlie Gower’s experience building a brand with data and feedback really underscores this; you need that raw, qualitative input to find your starting point.
In week one, you’re a journalist. In month one, you become a scientist. Take what you heard in those calls and form two or three hypotheses about what this new segment actually cares about. Maybe it's convenience, maybe it's a specific ingredient, maybe it's status. Now, you can start testing those angles with small, targeted social media ads. This isn't about a big, expensive campaign. It's about testing messages. It's the kind of practical, iterative approach Dylan Jacob took when BrüMates pivoted to successfully engage a new demographic. You're trying to find what resonates before you commit.
Throughout this process, I would completely ignore the impulse to do a massive, top-to-bottom rebrand. A full overhaul might be where you end up, but it's not where you start. The Shopify Masters episode Extreme Business Makeover makes a great point about the challenge of overhauling a brand without alienating your current customers. Your initial job is to see if you can make a connection with this new audience without destroying what you currently have. Think evolution, not revolution. New messaging and targeted campaigns can work alongside what you’re already doing.
The biggest trap to avoid is leading with your brand storytelling before you've validated the product's appeal. I see this happen all the time. People get so excited about their "why" that they forget the customer's "what's in it for me?" An episode of Ecommerce Playbook called Product First, Brand Impact Second really shaped my thinking on this. They argue that for most consumer goods, you have to prove the product's value and viability first. The brand story amplifies that core appeal, it doesn't create it. Get the messaging right on the product's core function for this new segment, and then you can layer in the emotional, story-driven elements that build a lasting connection.