It can take quite a bit of time to create a customer avatar. You may have to create more than one. The project can take on a life of its own and never be complete as it can change.
Let’s quickly go through the process and see if it’s worth your time and effort.
Why Should You Create a Customer Avatar?
Since you just want sales and don’t really care who buys, why is it important to narrow your thinking to just one person? The truth in business is the same as in life: You can’t be all things to all people. Your business, your products also will not appeal to all people.
That’s why it important to create products and services that will be the answer for your perfect customer. When you create your customer avatar, your creativity and your marketing will be clear. Your choices will become simple because you are not creating for the masses, but to a specific person.
What is a Customer Avatar?
Your customer avatar is the compilation of your perfect customer’s demographics, psychographics, interests and habits. Depending on what you’re selling, you may have more than one customer avatar for your different product lines or services.
Your customer avatar focuses on your most desired customer. If as many men as women are your customers, you may want to create two customer avatars. But if you prefer to work with one gender over the other, just focus on your preference
This doesn’t mean your marketing will be sexist (genderist?) but you use colors, words and images that attract your customer.
Your customer avatar is the person you want to connect with. She is interested in your type of products and buys them regularly. You want her to know she can trust your company’s integrity to give her the highest quality and best value for her money. When you let her get to know that you will stand behind your product, she will become your customer for life — as long as you keep up your end of the relationship.
What Will You Do with Your Customer Avatar?
When you specifically define your perfect customer it can help you create consistent content and marketing materials. If a team member thinks of a great new marketing idea, you can test it against your avatar to see if it will appeal to him. If it’s close, you can tweak it to get it in line. If not, you’ll know to file it away for a different product line or service.
This audience message consistency will influence:
- The stories you tell
- The voice you use
- The products you develop
- The places where you advertise
- The social platforms you target
- The language you use on your website and in your emails
Is it Worth the Time and Effort?
This is one of those things that you really don’t need to do. You can market like you’re throwing spaghetti at a wall as an art form. Some will fall right off. Some slide down the wall. Some will stick creating a masterpiece.
But if you want to know which of your efforts are getting you the result you want, a good place to start is WHO you are marketing to. Business is not about you or your product. It’s about your audience — the people who want to buy from you because you solve their problem or add something fun, beautiful or tasty to their lives.
They trust you will make good on your promises and make their lives just a little bit better.
So instead of asking, “Is it worth the time and effort to create a customer avatar?” perhaps you should ask if you can afford NOT to define your customers and prospects?