The #1 mistake I see business owners, marketers, and innovators making with their customer personas is…
not including enough real data.
If your customer personas include only demographic information – they don’t have enough information.
Which means, in turn, that you don’t have enough information to make good decisions for your business!
Don’t stop short of when customer personas actually become useful.
But don’t guess! Market research will help you make the best and strongest decisions you can for your business.
Ask your real customers (or leads) questions.
Here are the 5 areas of your customer’s lives you should definitely explore to build robust buyer personas, that will help you connect and convert!
1. Lifestage & Lifestyle
Focus on lifestage rather than demographics. Where your target audience lives is less important that HOW they live. How old they are is less important than the milestones they’re working towards.
2. Past Behaviour
Rather than asking your customers to speculate into the future, ask them to reflect on their past.
The more recent the better, so don’t forget to include a time frame – depending on your industry you might want to know about the past month, or the past year.
3. Trends
Ask questions about their participation in ongoing trends.
Trends we’re seeing in June 2022:
- houseplants
- cannabis use
- gentle parenting
- Y2K fashion
- cryptocurrency
- rainbow washing
- nostalgia
- crafting meaningful, purpose-focused experiences
4. Values
Asking about the values that guide your audience’s purchasing decisions will tell you the key to their heart. And ultimately, the key you need to build out messages to speak to those values.
5. Attitudes & Habits
Ask about your customer’s current attitudes and habits they’re participating in right now. You’ll learn the moments your product/service could be a part of and how they feel about them.
Example Question:
Thinking of last week, how many dinners did you cook personally? In an ideal world, would you cook more or less than that?
So, are you ready to create data informed customer personas that will make your…
…customers feel included and respected? Seen and understood?
…marketing and promotional strategies more effective?
…business decisions smarter, faster, and stronger?
