- 7 Ways to Embrace the Digital Nomad Lifestyle - February 2, 2024
- Tying the Knot and Changing Coasts: A Life Update - January 9, 2024
- How to develop digital content that generates leads for your business in Dubai? - March 24, 2023
What is Grow with GRV?
Grow with GRV is a series that I felt compelled to release, keeping in mind the current market situation that has badly hit businesses and jobs across the globe. One way to adapt to the rapidly changing market is by going digital. If you offer a product or service that was majorly dependent on offline sales, follow this series to learn how to infuse digital DNA in your business strategy. By doing so, you shall be able to neutralise a notable amount of damage caused by plummeting offline sales.
Before you begin any sort of digital marketing activity it is of prime importance to be clear about the profiles of your ideal clientele. This is the very first step one should take when trying to device a content strategy that will help you find clients online. This is where you should begin if you would like to carve out a niche for yourself and reach exactly those who you want to.
There are so many generalists out there, that you need to define your niche well enough to attract and serve your target audience well. I personally call this activity – Personify Your Top Five.
The idea is, as the name suggests, to sketch out profiles of top 5 people who would top the list of your ideal clientele. So how exactly can we zero down on our top 5 client profiles to find clients online? It ain’t tough to get it right, all you need to do is create 5 ideal client profiles using the pointers mentioned below.
1) Demographics: Here is where you can start the profiling easily. If you have already been in business for a while, think of the last client you came across who would easily qualify to be your ideal client. Now start jotting down the demographic attributes of that person. Write whatever you are sure you know about that person. For other attributes that you are unsure of, try to deduce based on what you could gather during your interaction with that client. The demographic attributes that I suggest getting clarity about are:
- Age group: Try to give a 5-year bracket if possible, if not 10 years at max.
- Gender: Applicable only if your product/service is gender-specific.
- Location: Note down the neighbourhood where your ideal client is likely to reside. This will help you create more relevant content and create targeted digital advertising.
- Education level: If education matters for your consumption of product/service then write down the level of education your ideal client would have, else simply put N/A. For example, a local French tutor may leave it as N/A but a local accounts teacher would ideally have students studying for a degree or diploma in finance and accounting.
- Income group: Many small business owners often carry an erroneous notion in their heads that their ideal client is always the one with deep pockets. What is often of value to a middle-class person often has hardly any value for the uber-rich and vice versa. For example, the rich often hire professional shoppers who do a consultation session and then go out in search of an ideal gift(s) based on the occasion. This profession has zero value in the lower and middle-class market. A middle-class person living from the past 10 years in a metropolitan may be in search of a better home rental deal while the uber-rich are most likely to already own a property in the city they have been living in for such a long while.
- Designation: This one probably the easiest to deduce. Is your ideal client a high school student, a banker, a marketing professional or a CEO? Name the designation that is most likely to fit your ideal client and you are done!
2) Challenges faced: People from all walks of life face challenges in their daily lives. Try and think like your ideal client and figure out a few challenges they face. For example, a personal tutor could write something like keeping focus for stretched time periods. A restaurant in a plush neighbourhood would write on – find freshly cooked hygienic food, while a restaurant in a desperate neighbourhood would write on find pocket-friendly meals.
3) Common interests: If you are in the product/service business that your client is interested in there is a decent chance of you being able to find a common interest with your ideal client. For example, if you are a musical instrument seller or tutor the two of you could find common grounds in fresh music releases or upcoming musical events in town. Producing digital content on such topics is gold as it is likely to be your best bet for arousing optimum interaction levels from your ideal clients. And all this whilst being least pushy about your product/service!
4) Social hangouts: Which social media channel is your ideal client likely to be more receptive for what you have to offer? Is it Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter or LinkedIn? For example, a food truck is most likely to seduce their ideal clients with their dishes on Instagram and Facebook while the chef who works there is most likely to get the best traction for his recipe videos on YouTube and Facebook.
5) Give a quirky name: The key here is to hit the right adjective(s). Oh and by the way when was the last time you had the opportunity to turn adjectives into nouns? Don’t get it yet? Here’s what I am trying to suggest… Mr Money Bags Biker would be an ideal quirky name for personifying the ideal client of a luxury motorbike brand. Or let’s say Sweet Tooth Soniya would be a quirky name for a bakery client. Want to get more creative… what about Teenage Fitness Freak for a gym or Miss mid-age stretchy pants for a yoga trainer’s ideal client.
Rejoice, you are through with the drill now to find clients online. So go ahead and personify your top 5 ideal client profiles and have some fun!