Marketing: Get to Know Your Ideal Client

By Christen Roberts, CWCC Member

All types of businesses engage in marketing in all kinds of ways with all kinds of results—some favorable, and some not so much. Often times, success or lack thereof is contingent on how well the business knows their market and/or customer.

It is astounding how often I ask business owners who their market and/or ideal client/customer is and they don’t know. Perhaps they think that everyone is their market. But unless you operate a fast food chain or a soft drink company, that is probably not the case. When developing a successful marketing campaign to grow a business and/or company, it is effective to create an ‘ideal client or customer profile’.

 Some things to consider when creating an ideal client or customer profile:

 1. How old and what gender are the people that use your product and/or service?

 2. Where do they live? Is that important to know?

 3. What are their income brackets, education levels, and work/industry experience?

 4. What are the details about their family life (married, children, etc.)?

 5. What is their ethnic background, religious beliefs, or national origin?

 6. What books do they read, music do they listen to, restaurants might they frequent, and what are their television program preferences, etc.

7. What hobbies and activities do they enjoy? Are they outdoor-types, crafts, collectors, web surfers, etc. ?

Once you obtain this data, a clearer, more dynamic picture of your clients emerges. From here, it becomes easier to explore the various types of media to use in order to reach them, such as direct mail, print, internet, or radio/television advertising. Until a company knows exactly who buys their products or uses their services, it remains an overwhelming challenge to make frequent and consistent sales.

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