When it comes to getting the most out of your marketing messaging, you must first know who the recipient of each marketing message is.
(often times, you want to know who your audience is first, then create a marketing message to move them forward)
The most general answer to the question would be “my customer.” However, you have many different types of customers.
Some customers are younger, some are older.
Some work a 9 to 5, some work graveyard.
Some watch Game of Thrones, some don’t. *gasp emoji
In this guide, I’ll be showing you how to create your ideal customer profile.
ANATOMY OF AN IDEAL CUSTOMER PROFILE
You’ve seen all the customers that have been in and out of your restaurant. From looking at them, you can gauge their age range and gender. After a couple of months, you will probably get a feel for what dominant age range and gender your business attracts.
But just because you know those two characteristics, doesn’t mean that you should target just those people.
If you want to maximize the effectiveness of your marketing, knowing those two facts aren’t enough.
Beyond demographics, which defines WHO a customer is, there are other profiling areas such as geographics, psychographics, and behaviors.
Some examples, besides the above-mentioned age and gender, of demographics include income level and education level.
Psychographics focus on WHY a customer buys. They are primarily based on a person’s ideas, values or lifestyle.
Some examples of psychographics can be people who live the gaming lifestyle, the fashionista lifestyle, or the foodie lifestyle.
Here are the profiles of each persona.
[GAMER GARY]
[FELICIA FASHIONISTA]
[FOODIE FRANK]
The above examples show just how in-depth customer profiling can be. Not only do we describe each person by their interests, but we also profile their daily schedule, what media they consume, and how they consume media.
Behavioral factors focus on HOW the customer buys. For example, if someone likes to shop, they most likely buy in person. However, if someone is a techie, they probably use their computer and e-commerce to purchase.
BUILDING AN IDEAL CUSTOMER PROFILE
When building an ideal customer profile, you want to imagine a previous customer who was your perfect customer. A customer that came in and did exactly what you expected him or her to do, such as:
From look:
Age
Gender
Clothes
With someone, relationship?
Rushed or patient?
From conversation:
Accent
Well-spoken or not
What kind of conversation? Small talk? Deep talk?
If you need a refresher on who some of your customers are, you can find them on Instagram using this strategy.
While you are thinking of your ideal customer, fill out this ideal customer template:
[TEMPLATE]
APPLYING YOUR IDEAL CUSTOMER PROFILE
Now that you have built your ideal customer profile, you can now apply it towards your marketing efforts.
Remember that the purpose of each marketing campaign you run is to move your ideal customer forward in their consumer decision-making journey.
You can apply your new ideal customer profile on the following platforms:
Facebook Ads
Facebook Groups
What marketing message will you be bestowing upon your new ideal customer?
