Your Ideal Client
💠 DEFINE YOUR IDEAL CLIENT 💠
Define Your Ideal Client and Understand Where and How To Target Your Marketing
Define Your Ideal Client
Define Your Ideal Client and understand where and how to target your marketing efforts.
This is a powerful exercise that allows you to really 'connect' with the personality of your ideal client.
You'll begin by choosing a gender for your character, and then spending some time dressing & refining your character.
Once you're done, grab the picture, and look at it while you answer the questions you'll find below.
Instructions for the Define Your Ideal Client Tool
This works kind of like a backwards form... but instead of picking which statements or concepts you agree with, you're going to dismiss the statements and concepts you disagree with.
Why do we do this process backwards like this?
We learn wisdom from failure much more than from success.
We often discover what will do, by finding out what will not do.
And probably... he who never made a mistake, never made a discovery.
Samuel Smiles (1812 - 1904)
The truth is that most people don't know how they feel, what they want, or where they stand on most issues.
BUT (big but!)... people DO know what they disagree with; in other words they know "what will not do".
For the most part, people are usually sure about what they don't like, what they don't want, and what they disagree with.
So, we've used this natural mental default to make this entire process easier for you.
Simply read through the statements listed below, one by one, and dismiss the statement if you disagree with it.
Let me say this carefully again... your task is to REMOVE the statements you disagree with - and ignore the statements that you don't disagree with. It's a process of elimination in other words.
Don't worry about how much you agree with the statement, or not; focus ONLY on removing the statements that you immediately disagree with.
At the end, what you're left with will be the balance of the statements, and this will be used to generate a crafted statement for you.
How to use the Define Your Ideal Client Fields
Follow the instructions in the example fields below to learn how to use the Define Your Ideal Client fields.
Remember that there are no right or wrong answers - just the information that you need to process.
You really can't get this wrong.
Any typing edits you make will be saved for you. This way, you are free to edit any of the statements to perfectly suit your individual situation.
Define Your Ideal Client Questions
Now that you've created a picture of your ideal client, we're going to answer some questions about this person.
The questions are designed to help you make this a useful experience - gathering insight about where you would aim your marketing efforts, for example.
Does Your Ideal Client have a Name?
This part of the exercise serves the purpose of giving your mind an identity to store characteristics behind.
This identity will make it much easier for you to store information about this character we're creating... simply because our minds store information behind identities.
Answering this question will help you apply this all of this knowledge practically.
How Old is Your Ideal Client?
Which target age group does Your Ideal Client belong to? You may select more than one.
Where is Your Ideal Client Located?
It's probably a good idea to use a map for some visual reference points, while you answer this question.
Take a moment to include country, state, region & city names in the relevant blocks. This info will come in very handy later when you are are deciding on target markets for products like AdWords, or considering TV or radio advertising.
Take a minute here to consider if your product can be sold outside your immediate locale. Are you able to ship internationally or meet with clients on Skype?
What are Your Ideal Client's Home & De Facto Languages?
Nowadays, it's very commonplace for people to do business, and conduct life, in one language, while they speak another at home.
As always, you are free to select more than two languages, as more may be applicable. You're also free to click & type to edit any of the fields, if you'd like to list specific languages from your region.
Which languages should you be using in your marketing?
You can consider having your marketing translated into additional languages. People often respond very well to being addressed in their mother tongue.
What Race or Ethnicity is Your Ideal Client?
Even though it's not very PC to admit it, the truth is that there are ethnic & cultural segregations that influence our activities, where we live, the holidays & celebrations we participate in, and so much more.
By identifying the cultures & ethnicities we're targeting, we know which holiday days to add to our marketing calender, such as Chinese New Year, or the Day of the Dead.
Identifying the cultures that your product or service can reach is just the start here. Now you need to go investigate the specifics of what would apply to that culture.
Use this knowledge together with the language and location information above.
What is Your Ideal Client's Gender?
Another not-very-PC segregation, this again yields knowledge that allows you to target more specifically.
Think about it like this... if you wanted to find patrons for a French restaurant, you wouldn't market yourself at a fast food joint.
Likewise, if your product is targeted at men, you're better off buying time on a sports channel. If your target is the LGBTQ community, then targeting attendees at a rally will work.
The aim of this is so that you can get to know your client better, and reach them where they are likely to be.
Once you have this knowledge, it will be easier to make choices about where you can wisely invest your (usually limited!) marketing budget.
Another not-very-PC segregation, gender yields knowledge that allows you to target more specifically.
Think about it like this... if you wanted to find patrons for a French restaurant, you wouldn't market yourself at a fast food joint.
Likewise, if your product is targeted at men, you're better off buying time on a sports channel. If your target is the LGBTQ community, then targeting attendees at a rally will work.
What is Your Ideal Client's Marital Status?
This is another field of segregation you might be offered when targeting your various marketing efforts.
This isn't a defining segregation, as many single & married people need the same products & services. However this can be useful for narrowing down a target selection.
So ask yourself, what is my ideal client more likely to be? Married or single. What you're trying to identify is: where is the person who will most likely buy your offering?
As always you can pick multiple options, and edit to change fields or add notes.
You can also apply some common sense here if your product applies to singles & married folk: married folk are likely to have more money at hand to spend. This is because they usually have two incomes in the house.
But, married people are more likely to be struggling if one of them loses a job, because their expenses are usually higher than a single income.
Remember our aim is to get to know your client so that you can make quick, effective, decisions about your marketing opportunities... and fill in those endless AdWords & social media marketing forms!
What is Your Ideal Client's Religion or Faith?
If you take the time to understand someone's religious affiliation, and the principles they therefore choose to live by, it can give you a powerful way to reach people.
While this won't be applicable for many people, there are many products aimed at these markets nowadays, such as healing services, coaching, mentoring, teaching, and more.
Understanding your client's faith will not only help you connect with them, and make them feel more included, but can help you avoid marketing errors that will lose you clients.
In a world where people are fighting for their way of life to be validated, and so many of us feel isolated & alone, this often-overlooked element can make a massive difference to the results you yield.
Getting real about who your clients actually are can also help you streamline your marketing message, e.g. you may be speaking to largely Christian clients who would be more comfortable hearing Holy Spirit instead of Source or Universe.
You'd be amazed at what a big difference a simple word change like that can make... but it starts with being honest about who your clients actually are.
Percentages listed are of the world population, according to Wikipedia.
Understanding your client's faith will not only help you connect with them, and make them feel more included, but can help you avoid marketing errors that will lose you clients.
Percentages listed are of the world population, according to Wikipedia.
What is Your Ideal Client's Highest Level of Education?
When you're looking at the level of education, you're determining elements like the content you will speak about, and the tone & vocabulary you'll use in your marketing.
Again, you can pick multiple options if you are working with a range. You can also edit any of the fields.
When you're looking at the level of education, you're determining elements like the content you will speak about, and the tone & vocabulary you'll use in your marketing.
How many hours per week does Your Ideal Client usually work?
Hours per week worked will give you a weighting value for the person's level of influence in the company.
It's easier for junior person, who is around more, to get buy in for something, than it is a senior person who's hardly ever on site.
Presence is correlated to trust, i.e. people are more likely to trust those people they spend more time with.
Hours per week worked will give you a weighting value for the person's level of influence in the company.
It's easier for junior person, who is around more, to get buy in for something, than it is a senior person who's hardly ever on site.
Presence is correlated to trust, i.e. people are more likely to trust those people they spend more time with.
What is the Size of Your Ideal Client's employer?
Employer Size is of much more relevance in Business2Business (B2B) Marketing, where segmentation often takes places on company size & industry.
The services (and pricing) of most companies is geared towards specific segments of the market: corporate or big business, medium sized enterprises, or small businesses.
While it seems like a nice idea to land a big, fat corporate client for your business, are you actually geared for their needs? Do you have enough time & resources to deliver the scale of project they might require?
Smaller businesses require smaller projects, and have smaller budgets, because they have less resources to pull on. But it can be enough to keep you going until you are ready to take on bigger things.
The values below are employees as counted across all the branches the business has.
p>Employer Size is of much more relevance in Business2Business (B2B) Marketing, where segmentation often takes places on company size & industry.
The services (and pricing) of most companies is geared towards specific segments of the market: corporate or big business, medium sized enterprises, or small businesses.
While it seems like a nice idea to land a big, fat corporate client for your business, are you actually geared for their needs? Do you have enough time & resources to deliver the scale of project they might require?
Smaller businesses require smaller projects, and have smaller budgets, because they have less resources to pull on. But it can be enough to keep you going until you are ready to take on bigger things.
What type of Employer does Your Ideal Client work for?
Another common segregation used to define lists & target markets, with each type of employer requiring different approaches.
Here, it's useful to ask yourself questions like 'how can my product/service be used by these other segmentations?'
What Industry Sector is Your Ideal Client in?
Try not to limit yourself here; instead try to see HOW your product can be targeted towards each of these industries.
You are free to keep as many industries as you'd like to, and can edit the fields if you can think of one we've forgotten.
Which industry sectors should your marketing target?
What level of Decision Making Authority does Your Ideal Client have in their place of employment?
In order to sell products & services in the Business2Business (B2B) environment, you need to make it past the gatekeeper, and to the decision maker.
Are you targeting the right people? The people with the actual power to make the choice about a purchasing decision.
Do you need to target the decision maker? Can you target a lower level employee and motivate them to sell the product for you?
What level of need does your product or service address? Do the people making the purchasing decisions have the knowledge to understand why your product or service is beneficial?
In order to sell products & services in the Business2Business (B2B) environment, you need to make it past the gatekeeper, and to the decision maker.
Are you targeting the right people? The people with the actual power to make the choice about a purchasing decision.
Do you need to target the decision maker? Can you target a lower level employee and motivate them to sell the product for you?
What level of need does your product or service address? Do the people making the purchasing decisions have the knowledge to understand why your product or service is beneficial?
Which job titles would fall into the levels of decision making you want to target?
Which Job Title most suits Your Ideal Client?
A good rule of thumb when working with job titles, is that you go into more detail for lower job titles, so deeper into specifics. For higher level titles, focus more on the big picture.
e.g. an accounting software at a lower level may focus on the amount of time it saves you day-to-day. For a higher level job title however, the focus may be on the fact that tax rates & calculations are included for you, along with dashboard overviews of all activities, at a glance.
A good rule of thumb when working with job titles, is that you go into more detail for lower job titles, so deeper into specifics. For higher level titles, focus more on the big picture.
e.g. an accounting software at a lower level may focus on the amount of time it saves you day-to-day. For a higher level job title however, the focus may be on the fact that tax rates & calculations are included for you, along with dashboard overviews of all activities, at a glance.
What Media does Your Ideal Client consume?
Below you'll find examples of various kinds of media avenues. Your job is to remove those you do NOT think your Ideal Client would engage with.
A secondary way to use this list is as a starting point for when you're wondering how to market a particular product or service, or need to change your marketing avenue.
While this list of possible avenues is long, it is by no means exhaustive. So feel free to edit & add your own ideas.
Distribution avenues to consider for your marketing efforts.
What does Your Ideal Client typically do during the day?
While the question above speaks to avenues for distribution, the next few questions help you zero in further on which avenues you should invest in.
So think about this Ideal Client picture you've created, and what their average day looks like, and identify the places where they might run across your marketing.
While the question above speaks to avenues for distribution, the next few questions help you zero in further on which avenues you should invest in.
So think about this Ideal Client picture you've created, and what their average day looks like, and identify the places where they might run across your marketing.
What could Your Ideal Client do on a weekend or holiday day?
As people become more savvy, it can become harder to reach certain segments of the target markets you've identified.
The list of advertising avenues we'll cover here, are those where you'll be better able to reach persons who are otherwise hard to pin down during the week.
Use these avenues to reach people over weekends, and during holidays, so that your business keeps moving, even when you take a day to rest.
Reaching people over weekends it a great way to access people you can't normally always reach, and a great way to access people while they're in a good mood.
What does Your Ideal Client value about your organization, product or service?
When Your Ideal Client interacts with your business, product or service, what is it that they are actually buying from you? What need or desire is being fulfilled?
It's worth taking a moment to get an outsider, or even a few clients, to answer this question as well.
An accurate view of how people view your service can make it a lot easier to compile the content for your marketing.
This list of Customer Values is drawn from the Harvard Business Review, and the original source can be found at https://hbr.org/2016/08/the-30-things-customers-really-value.
When Your Ideal Client interacts with your business, product or service, what is it that they are actually buying from you? What need or desire is being fulfilled?
A skilled copywriter can effectively use these values to create lead ins & angles for your marketing. These are your main selling points.
This list of Customer Values is drawn from the Harvard Business Review,
and the original source can be found at https://hbr.org/2016/08/the-30-things-customers-really-value.
Generate Your Ideal Client Results
Generate Your Ideal Client Results
Now that you've worked through the various areas of focus, click the button below to GENERATE YOUR IDEAL CLIENT RESULTS.
The results will then appear below the buttons, and you'll have another chance to refine & edit. Simply click anywhere to type additional points, or use the trash icon to delete that statement.
When you're finished your edits, hit MAKE PDF to save the statement to PDF. The PDF view that is generated will also be editable.
If your device doesn't support PDFs, or you'd like to save the content elsewhere, then use the COPY TO CLIPBOARD button and the content will be copied for you.
Use the buttons below to generate your Ideal Client Results.
🎨 GENERATE YOUR IDEAL CLIENT RESULTS🎠 MAKE PDF - ONLINE OR DESKTOP
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