When putting together your marketing strategy, one of the first things you will do is conduct research. Research on the current market, industry trends, and most importantly: your audience. Finding your target audience is an extremely crucial step that you can’t afford to mess up, because not everyone needs or even cares about your product/service. If you are sending out mass marketing messages to an unspecified audience, chances are they are going straight into the black abyss of a junk mailbox.
Understanding your audience allows you to reach only those who are interested in your company. Through creating a Buyer Persona, you can understand your customers' needs and preferences. A buyer persona is a fictional “person” you create to represent your company’s target market. Essentially, you will create a profile for your ideal customer.
On this profile you will include basic demographic categories like gender, age, annual income, location, and background. Then, you will include categories that contribute to your audience’s buying patterns. These might look like unique identifiers, communication preferences, challenges and roadblocks, personal goals, motivations, personality traits, and so on.
A great way to start your Buyer Persona is to look at your existing customer base. They've already purchased your product and engaged with your company, and are a reliable source of information.
Understanding your target audience is key to getting in front of paying customers. It creates loyalty, improves reach, and ultimately leads to success in your business goals.
Want to get started? Fill out your own Buyer Persona template below!
For one-on-one marketing help, reach out to teal@focusingforwardconsult.com