I’m just going to say it: I’m not sure you know your customer like you think you do. It’s one of the most important parts of any marketing campaign. Without knowing the customer, who is your target? Are you just creating content in hopes that someone, somewhere will like what you write? I hope not, but often that is exactly what people do. Not only is that simply ineffective, but it’s a waste of your precious time!
In order to really understand who your target audience is, it’s important to research and create buyer personas. These personas will make it easier for you to create the content and marketing plan that will be most effective for your company.
QUESTIONS ANSWERED IN THIS BLOG:
- What are Buyer Personas?
- How do personas help with an inbound marketing campaign?
- How can I create a great buyer persona?
Let’s start with the basics. A Buyer Persona is a description you create of an ideal customer. More than that, it defines, in a concrete document, what prospective consumers are thinking and doing when they are trying to address a problem that your company can solve. These personas help you to create content that you know people need and are even searching for. Everything you create should help buyers solve their problems.
In order to write these Buyer Personas, you need to do your research. More specifically, you need to talk to current customers. Insights from people who actually use your business will show how they solve problems and can lead you to make better marketing decisions. Start with 3-5 interviews for each persona you plan on creating.
Here is an example of a great Buyer Persona from our partners at HubSpot:
Now that you know what a Buyer Persona is, here is a test. If you can answer these questions, you know your customer:
What is their demographic (age, relationship status, children)?
What is their job and what knowledge and skills does this job require?
Who do they report to? Who reports to them?
What’s the size of their company?
What are their goals?
What are their biggest challenges?
You need to be able to answer all of these questions for each persona. Once you can successfully answer each one, you know your customer! Continue to analyze and reach out even after you have created content. Maybe you find that there are more personas out there for you to create. It’s not unusual to have three to five targets, each with very specific needs. Then, you know each piece of content will be positioned right, now that you know your audience.