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Where is my ideal client, and how can I get them to buy from me

Introduction

Last week I ran a poll in my Facebook Group; I asked my lovely members what their most prominent social media challenge was. The top result was ‘I don’t know where my ideal clients hang out. 

It’s a question I have been asked time and time again, and I know it’s a massive frustration for so many service-based business owners. They often explain it to me in this way:

The good news is that all of these things are fixable, but you need to rewind and ask yourself the following questions:

Start at the beginning.

We spend so much focussing on our clients that we often don’t think about who we want or need to be working with. But once you take the time to do this, a lot of things will fall into place (although this won’t happen overnight).

Think back to when you started your business: Did you retrain, did you leave a corporate career and what were the reasons for doing so, what was your motivation and who did you want to help?

I work with a lot of therapists, coaches and business advisors (my ideal clients), and most of them tell me they started their business because they had seen the positive impact the services they now offer had on people’s lives and businesses. They wanted to be part of that journey and spread that message. 

Firstly, ask yourself: Why do I do what I do?

You can brainstorm, you can write it down or even better, get someone to ask you and video/ record what you say (you’ll be amazed at how easy it is to quantify once you say it!)

Then you need to think about:

Often we fail to focus on the values part, but if you were interviewing for a job and the company culture didn’t match your ethos or what you were looking for, you probably wouldn’t want that job! It’s the same in your business.  Whether we know it or not, our values underpin everything we do, and if our client’s values don’t match ours, the chances are it’s not going to be a happy union!

Specific needn’t be scary.

There is a lot of talk around niching your business/ your audience at the moment. As a business owner,  particularly if you have just started out, the notion might sound scary! That little voice in your head tells you that you might be missing out on a huge pool of people who might buy from you.

Not everyone will buy from you, and that’s ok; actually, it’s more than ok. Because it means you can focus on those who really need you, and there will be plenty of those people. The great thing is that this makes it much easier to refine your messaging and understand what works and what your customers need. 

The good news is that niching doesn’t need to be about a particular industry or group of people. It can be about who you help and the problem you solve – but you need to be clear on this. 

Ask your audience to help.

If you are developing a new service or proposition, it makes sense to do your research and ask potential customers what they want and need from you and what they like about your products or services. 

But before that, you need to research your ideal client. If you are lucky enough to already have some clients you love or even contacts you love to work with, You can always ask if you can interview them to find out more about their:

Most people will be flattered you to asked. This is also a great way to build relationships as it shows your customers you are interested in them and encourages conversation without selling!

Survey’s and polls also work well. Although these need to be more focussed and specific, they are brilliant for finding out how your audience consumes content, what they know about your services and, the challenges and struggles they have that relate to your business and your content. 

If you are already marketing your business, make sure you analyse it to see what is working and what isn’t. What we see on the surface isn’t always the whole picture. You can learn just as much from something that isn’t working as from something that is.

Develop a User Persona or client profile 

You have now uncovered a whole load of information about your ideal client, so it’s time to create a client profile. A client profile is a fictional representation of a real person that reflects your dream client  (you can base it on an actual client). But it is essentially a profile of your target customer based on the research you have done. 

It is recommended to have between 3-5, but one well thought out one will be much easier to create. You will need to include:

Having clearly defined user personas will help you empathise with your customers and position your messaging to resonate with them. 

How will this help my business?

Putting it into practice 

By now, you will have a better idea of where your audience is and how you can target them. However, it is essential to remember that most people have multiple social media accounts and use each platform for different purposes. They may not have given too much thought to why they are using that Social Media Platform, so you’ll need to conduct your own research. 

You could do the following:

Social Media Platform overview

Facebook: Still, the Worlds most popular social media platform with 2.5 billion active uses per month. Facebook is excellent at identifying and reacting to what its users want, and it’s not going anywhere.

Instagram:Also owned by Facebook, Instagram originally started off as a photo-sharing site. It has 1.2 billion active users a month, and those who have  an Instagram account are amongst the most active on the internet.

Twitter: Quick to use on the go and completely open to the public. Twitter is brilliant for interacting with brands, customer service, research and driving conversation.

Linkedin: Seen initially as an online CV store. Linkedin has grown to be the no. 1 site for B2B marketing with a high-value client base who are actively looking to make business connections.

YouTube: 2020 was a massive year for Youtube as we consumed more video than ever before. The original video sharing site which boasts more than 2 billion logged-in users per month.

Pinterest: Not technically a social media site, Pinterest is more of a search engine as people intend to purchase products and goods.

Of course, a lot more information is available on the internet. Some brilliant resources include Oberlo, Brandwatch, statista, Hootsuite and SproutSocial

There is also an entire module in my Unlock your Social Media Confidence course on telling your story, developing a user persona, and attracting your ideal client! As well as full demographics and a walkthrough of each platform. You can find out more here.