“There are no traffic jams along the extra mile.” – Roger Staubac
Often when asked who is your customer? The answer is everyone. However, this is a notion that has been proved wrong again and again. We all know that specialists charge us more than General practitioners
The idea is to find a small inch of the customer base but a mile deep. Simply put, create a product or service that is serving a niche target audience. When you specialize you tend to offer premium services and you become unique which drives only specific customers with those specific needs to come to you. There are multiple advantages of working with a target audience with a specialty. You get paid premium; you can do specific advertising. Since it is a smaller group of people you can reach out to them easily and can find them easily.
A wise business owner understands that not all will be interested in your products and services. And the idea is to create a unique product or service so that you have a specific group of audiences. Another important understanding that a good business owner has, is that you need to have a customer-centric product or service. It is never about us but always about them. Unless they choose you, your entire business model will not be effective and profitable. The customer need is the first start point. To find your customer you need to essentially look around you and understand market needs and identify how you can come up with a sustainable product/service which can satisfy a customer need. For example – with the advent of more and more businesses offering online options, there is a specific need for website developers and designers.
Imagine a situation where you are in the last few minutes of closing a deal and you need to read the mind of your client; would you not like to know which way the decision is going? For you to read their mind you need to be in their shoes and think like them and act like them, have tasted like them, match their beliefs, have the same habits the list is endless. The customer will reach out to you for your product and service, but you can’t depend on them to always reach out rather you need to reach out and figure out a way to grab their attention and sell to them. This can happen only if you know where your customers hang out or what interests them or what they would choose? So how do we go about concluding this list and making sure we are correct about identifying them correctly? The answer is a simple – experiment. The exercise of finding the right type of customer is one that you will need to repeat time and again as your products/services evolve.
Let’s understand how to start this experiment. You have decided on your home-based business and come up with a list of products/services, now make a list of probable customers around you. Someone you know from your friends, family, or neighbors. Create a small group of trusted potential customers and reach out to them. Offer them a product/service sample free and ask them to send honest feedback on the quality, utility, price point, and other factors as a consumer.
This is such an important step! Often people start building something they think is a great idea, but they don’t get feedback from anyone around them. The time to get advice and feedback is before you develop your product/service. You want to get feedback before building something no one wants or creating a solution to a problem that doesn’t exist. By now, you’ve already talked to a few potential customers. Now, it’s time to reach out to friends, family, and experts. This step is not about getting advice from people you are going to sell, it’s about reaching out to people you can learn from and those who will give you honest feedback.
Here is a simple format that you can use to send an email or a message
Dear _____________Insert Name
Greetings from ______________ Your company Name
You are a trusted friend/family member and your feedback matters to me!
I’m working on launching my new business and I would love honest feedback on my idea. Are you available for a call? I’d be very grateful for your time — even just 30 minutes. Please let me know when it’s most suitable to you as per convenience and I shall set up a call.
Many thanks,
YOUR NAME
Make sure you don’t pick people who will patronize you or try to please you or be biased towards you. Rather choose someone who has previous experience or wisdom and can share an honest and unbiased opinion of your business plan. The idea is not to find someone to just endorse your plan without actually understanding your offerings. Make sure you get them to highlight the risks or potential issues you might face. Take detailed feedback and be open and receptive to understanding the perspectives.
Once you have done a dry run of your business idea and got feedback it’s time to draw the avatar of our ideal customer. You will need to make a detailed summary based on the following points
1. What is the gender of your customers?
2. What is the age group?
3. Location – Are they living in your city as well as elsewhere
4. Online location – Which online platform are they most on?
5. What is their income group?
6. What are their belief systems?
7. What are their hobbies/Interests?
8. What do they do in their free time?
9. What is their biggest fear?
10. What is their big dream?
11. What are their priorities?
12. What would you do to catch their attention?
13. What would be the emotional need for your product or service?
14. What would be the logical need for your product or service?
15. How much do they earn?
16. What is the family income?
17. What activity predominantly occupies their day?
18. What are their personality and habits?
19. Who are the influencers?
20.What prompts them to make decisions?
In less than 300 words write down the problem you are solving for your ideal customer. You may not have one group as your target audience and the problem you are solving will differ for each target audience. Make sure you make separate notes but focus on one target audience at a time for some time. Make sure you fill out answers to these questions in detail. If you are still confused who is your customer connect click on the link and book a call to discover https://coachpreeti.com/#contact