Creating a strategy that identifies your ideal customers is something we talk about a lot but so many small business owners turn their noses up at doing this - we are too busy running our business for all that.
We get it, you are the person delivering/making the product, answering the calls, creating the marketing, closing the sales, balancing the books etc... But being this busy is WHY you must create these customer avatars, as they will save you time and money.
Time For a Short Story
Nearly 5 years ago, James and I went with friends to Wales for white water rafting. On the drive down, it was raining sideways, so we assumed on arriving it would be cancelled and we'd head for the pub.
How wrong we were. The chap running the course explained his 'magic finger' - which prompted 5 lads to ask what this magic finger was! Turns out, when he started he would point out the dangers, thinking that would help people avoid problems but it had the opposite effect as people headed towards them.
This is why he now points directly at the furthest point you can see in the direction you should be going and simply says 'head that way'. Simple really. But a perfect analogy for how small business owners can avoid costly mistakes (time and money) by not getting distracted. Focus is EVERYTHING.
Shiny New Toy Syndrome
One of the biggest reasons we tell people to build customer avatars is so they can be used to judge if anything new is worth your time and money. We call it the shiny new toy syndrome. We are all guilty of this. A new channel arrives, new technology we could use, an idea of messaging, maybe a new product range we could add.
But how do we avoid spending time and money on these shiny new toys, or at least avoid wasting it on the ones that are not worth it? Let's look at a couple of examples and how having ideal customers is the best answer.
A New Social Media Channel
Over the last few years, we've seen the emergence of TikTok and to a lesser extent Threads. When new channels arrive, the temptation is to jump straight on them. But will they use time you don't have, without delivering any returns? If you understand the type of customers you want to acquire, you'll know if they will be on these channels.
Whilst TikTok is a great engagement channel and the shop is increasingly becoming a must-use shopping channel for many, people won't buy certain products/services on it, whilst some personality types won't use it. You need to understand all this before making a decision.
Imagine if you spent half a day creating your ideal customers, then didn't spend 2 days a month working on a new channel that doesn't deliver results for you - that's 44 hours saved within the next three months. You're welcome.
Developing a New Product Range
You've had an idea for a new product and are about to spend several weeks and £2,000 developing a prototype. Now stop for a second and assess your ideal customers. Will they purchase this product range? What price would they pay for it? Even if it's a good product idea, would you need to start appealing to a new customer type?
Considering all these points, you might decide now is not the time to launch this new product, saving you weeks of work and £2,000. Once again, you are more than welcome!
Focus, Focus, Focus - Use Your Ideal Customers
Ultimately, having customer avatars is a key part of a marketing strategy and gives you focus. It is your magic finger that points you in the direction you want to go and avoids rowing into rocks.
Build out your customer avatars and every time you have a decision to make if you should be investing your time and money, you ask yourself - will our customer care? Will they buy it? Will they engage with it? This focus will save you precious time and money.
