One of the foundational elements of any marketing strategy is a narrowly defined target client. For the small business I take that a step deeper to something I call the ideal, or for the sake of this post, perfect client. That one perfect kind of client is what all business should understand and I think it’s unique to each and every business.
You can’t simply define a set of demographics to find the ideal client – the ideal client finds you, but then you’ve got to build your entire business around that understanding.
The 5 steps below, applied to your current client base and worked in order, will tell you more about your true ideal client than any marketing class or book ever will.
- Find your most profitable clients
- From the above group identify those that refer
- From that even smaller group find common demographic characteristics
- Take the time now to understand the behavior that makes them ideal
- Draw a fully developed biographical sketch to use as your marketing guide
I explain each of these steps in great detail is this week’s column at AMEX OPENForum.
