Buyer personas are fictional representations of your ideal customer. We use them at different marketing stages to shift our focus from statistics to empathy.
They are avatars who help you identify what motivates your potential customers, readers, followers… where they spend time and what they need. This way, it is easier for marketing teams to know who they are talking to, and for sales teams to know who they are selling to, so they both know how to connect with them.
But how do you create your buyer personas?
Buyer personas are a mix of real data and educated speculation about customer demographics, motivations and behavior.
You can get a lot of data from your customer statistics and market studies. But you will get really powerful insight interviewing your current customers and talking to your marketing and sales teams, customer service representatives and other individuals who are in contact with customers and potential customers.
And, there is also room for creativity and educated guesses. Think about the places they spend time on, who they listen to and where they would like to be in ten years time. And try giving each of them a name and a face, it will help you work with them.
Best practices for building buyer personas
- When you are defining your personas, focus on motives, not just facts. What motivates your potential customers will help you know what to tell them and how to attract them.
- Make sure that your personas aren’t describing just a few people. They need to be specific, but representing a group big enough or valuable enough.
- Transform the facts into a short story. Facts are interesting, but stories are easier to remember and to connect with.
Free buyer persona profile builder on pdf
Below you will find a free data sheet to know which information you might need to gather. Don’t worry if you don’t have all the answers yet. Buyer personas evolve as your brand does.
