A common mistake many of us make is to forget, over time, that our audience really is unique. We depend on luck to find a message that connects. Don’t lose sight of the true face of your best customer! Here is a quick exercise to help focus your marketing effort where it counts the most:

Get specific.

Consider your top 3 customers for a moment:

  1. What are their characteristics? Are they an aggressive go-getter? Nurturer? Authoritarian? Anti-establishment? At work by 6am? Dressed up? Dressed down? Social butterfly? Detail oriented? Focused on the numbers? Focused on the people? Focused on the task? Get personal, intimate and specific.
  2. What’s their poison? News junkie? Pop culture junkie? Caffeine junkie? Is it family, travel, or a hobby that keeps them going? Get specific — how well do you really know your very best customers?
  3. What environments allow your top 3 to thrive? Fast paced? Laid back? Clan culture? Solo? Hierarchical? Quiet? Dynamic? Entrepreneurial? Creative? Get specific.
  4. What are the numbers? Age? Gender? Education? How many people do they manage? Job title? Income level? Get as specific as you can with the numbers that matter.

Analyze and imagine.

As you look your answers, what can you extrapolate from this small but very relevant sampling? Look for clues:

  1. What do these 3 customers have in common? How are they different?
  2. What jumped out at you? What surprised you?
  3. If someone asked you where to find these 3 as a group, where would you tell them to look? And where could you find them as individuals?

Go past the obvious.

Sure, if your 3 best customers are all members of your local business group, that’s a good clue. But dig deeper. Use your psychology, your creativity, and make it fun.

Go there.

Get smart and put yourself where your customers are. Whether you need to join a club, attend an event, be part of a group, or get to a place or a state of mind — once you know…go!

This world is blind! There are so few who see things as they truly are. -Zen saying