Do you know who your customers really are? Or hoping your customers are who you want them to be? When creating a marketing plan, it is typical to have an idea of who you want your target market to be but are they really the market for your brand. Have you researched your competition thoroughly? Have you read articles and blogs that are relevant to the industry? What social channels and social listening tools have you utilized? Understanding your customer will take thorough research and not just an assumption or fantasy of who you want your customers to be.
Let’s see how you can create effective buyer/customer personas
- What is a buyer/customer persona?
- Researching Tools
- Examples of buyer/customer personas
What is a buyer/customer persona?
Time and resources must be used to focus on quality prospects. Too often, companies and entrepreneurs implement marketing strategies that do not relate to the audience. That happens because they do not know who their customers are or unknowingly target the wrong customers. “Buyer personas are semi-fictional representations of your ideal customers based on data and research.” (Vaughan, 2021) Emphasis on data and research.
Researching Tools
There are many ways to research your company’s buyer personas. Some of the resources are free but will take time and effort to obtain relevant and quality data.
The image below demonstrates the various tools to help understand who your customers are, where they are, and what they are talking about.
Examples of Buyer/Customer Personas:
Conclusion
Buyer personas are not just guesses; they require data and research. Utilizing Google Analytics, social media, email automation, and online survey software such as Survey Monkey can assist with carrying out buyer persona research. However, be sure to start with available tools and use multiple platforms and channels to create an effective marketing strategy.
What tools and resources do you use to create your company’s buyer/customer personas? Have the strategies implemented been successful? Join the conversation by leaving a comment below! Also, be sure to connect with me on LinkedIn and Twitter.
References
FlowState Branding. (2018, September 26). Simple tools you can use to define your buyer personas. FlowState. https://flowstatebranding.com/insight/simple-tools-you-can-use-to-define-your-buyer-personas/
Vaughan, P. (2021, January 18). How to create detailed buyer personas for your business [Free persona template]. HubSpot Blog | Marketing, Sales, Agency, and Customer Success Content. https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/buyer-persona-research
