One of my recent posts focused on the 6 Key Steps to Successful Content Marketing campaigns. Today let’s look at the second step – Build a Profile of Your Ideal Customer.
The problem with much current marketing is it’s very general in an attempt to attract as many people as it can. So general, in fact, it actually appeals to very few. It does
n’t really connect with the person or people most in need of what is being offered.
For marketing to be successful, it needs to appeal directly to those most likely to buy the product or service being offered. Those who really need it. Those who will be more successful with it. So you need to focus on a very specific group.
How Do You Find That Group?
You start by looking at your current customers. Who are the main decision makers at these companies?
What if yours is a new company and you have very few customers? You look at the clients or customers of your main competitors. If you’re in a new field where you don’t have much competition, you research who most likely will buy your product or service. You focus on those.
Once you have this information, you build a profile for your ideal client or customer. What are they specifically like? Here are items to look at when building your profile:
Age – How old is this person? Marketing that connects with a 45-year-old is different than that appealing to a 25-year-old.
Gender – Are they male or female? Men tend to be more logical. Women tend to be more intuitive, relational and emotional.
Are they wealthy, middle class or rising stars?
What fears and frustrations do they have right now?
What are the 3 things they want most right now?
What are the 3 things they want to avoid most right now?
What is currently stopping them from achieving what they want right now?
What is the main problem they have that keeps them up at night which your product or service will solve for them?
What mistakes have they made in the past which have kept them from the success they desire? Are they continuing to make these now?
Give Your Ideal Customer a Name
Keep Their Profile in Front of You As You Write
Once you create this profile of your ideal customer or client, give him or her a name. Keep it in front of you when you are creating your marketing pieces. Make sure you write your marketing pieces to this person.
When you do this, you will find your marketing becomes much more personal. You will connect more deeply with them.
Normally your ideal customer is in a specific age group. However, you may be dealing with different people in that age group at the companies you target.
The president and other executives may be very bottom line type A personalities. The managers or people you deal with may have expressive personalities for whom specific details are not important.
At these times your marketing pieces have to connect with both groups. They have to focus on the bottom line concerns and at the same time not be too focused on the details to lose those with expressive personalities.
The same is true when you are dealing with men and women at companies. Your marketing has to appeal to both.
A real challenge comes up when your study reveals the executives of 50% of your best companies are in an older age group and the executives of the other 50% are 30 and younger. Typically, the same marketing will not appeal to both.
In this case, you need to develop 2 profiles of your ideal clients or customers – one of the older one and one of the younger one. Then you develop separate marketing campaigns for each one.
Your marketing will be most successful when you write it for those who match the profile of your ideal client or customer. The more adept you are at doing this the more successful you will be.
