You might be lead to believe that targeting potential clients—any clients—is going to have the greatest impact on your business. After all, wouldn’t logic say, “If I can reach A LOT I should be able to grab some?” While this may be true in some sense, it will never benefit you in the long run. When we try to cater to everyone, we end up catering to no one.
Identifying your ideal client, and targeting them specifically will undoubtedly be the greatest way to generate stronger leads and, in turn, increase your conversion rates. It’s not only necessary for your sales strategy, but it’s also essential! Knowing *exactly* who your product/service is geared toward will help you to attract clients rather than having to go out searching for them!
So, how do you do it? I’m sharing seven of the best ways to identify and understand your ideal client so that you can cater your sales strategy directly to converting them into paying clients.
- Have a deep and thorough understanding of your product/service
The clearer you are on what your product/service is offering to your clients, the better you will be able to serve them.
Ask yourself these questions:
- What problem is it solving for your client?
- How will it minimize the struggles that they face on a daily basis?
- Will it improve their lives—personally and/or professionally? How?
The more precisely you can answer these questions, the better.
- What demographic would this be a fit for?
Step into your ideal client’s shoes. Embody them, envision them, give them a name, an age. Have this person so engrained in your mind—down to every last detail of who they really are. What are their struggles? What are they calling their best friend to vent about? What do they need guidance with? All of these small details that you can pinpoint will help you hone in on who that person really is.
Some additional questions to ask yourself:
- What is the age range of this person?
- Where do they live? (City, suburb, rural?)
- What is their income level? How much are they willing to pay for your offering?
- What is their education level?
- What are their hobbies/interests/likes/dislikes?
- What kind of job do they currently have, or what kind of job are they seeking?
- Take a look at the current clients/customers you DO Have
If you’ve already got playing clients, they are a huge asset to you that you can leverage to target new clients. You should constantly be seeking feedback from them, asking them for reviews/testimonials, send them a survey, and be sure to ask pertinent questions about your offering and how they are finding it.
- Observe any failed lead generations
We’ve all had sales fails. While those past interactions might not have been so favorable, they can still be teachable moments that are valuable to you as you move forward in your client acquisition quest.
Ask yourself:
- What went wrong?
- Why weren’t they a fit?
- What were their objections? Price? Time commitment? Unconvinced of the benefit?
- Check out your analytics on your social media platforms
Are you paying attention to your stats? You should be! The analytics on your social media platforms are SO telling and can reveal some vital information about the audience you’re attracting and the people who are engaging with your content (i.e. likely your ideal client!)
Your analytics can tell you:
- The location of your audience
- The gender breakdown
- Age ranges
- The time of day they are most active and engaged
- The posts they’re responding to most
Don’t overlook this vital—and completely free—tool!
- Observe the competition
You should always be aware of your competition; from the type of content they’re putting out to the type of product/service they’re offering. When it comes to your ideal client and your competition, you should be taking note of who exactly they’re interacting with and what they are targeting with their content.
- Know their preferred platforms
Digital marketing is the MOST powerful form of marketing right now. If you’re not showing up online, you’re missing out ENTIRELY. So, what do you need to know about your ideal clients’ online habits?
You should know:
- What platforms are they using most? Pinterest? Instagram? LinkedIn?
- What content are they most intrigued by? Are they engaging mostly with video? With infographics? Personal photos?
- Who are they following? What groups are they joining? What online communities are they a part of?
- What kind of information are they searching for? What do they want to—and need to—know about?
When it comes to understanding your ideal client’s online habits, try to embody them. If you were them, would you engage with the content that you’re producing? If not, it’s time to pivot.
Hopefully, these tips will make the process of identifying your ideal client much less daunting. When you know exactly where to focus your time and energy you are much more likely to see the results that you desire.
If you have any questions about identifying, and targeting, your ideal client, book a 90-minute call with me today! This is my area of specialty, and I’m here to help!