Getting clear on your ideal client

Have you heard the saying: “When you speak to everyone, you speak to no one”? (Meredith Hill)

Well, it's true.

Everything in PR comes down to your audience.

Because if you’re not talking directly to them, then you might as well be talking to an empty room. 

You need every aspect of your biz, from your website, social media and press presence to your brand voice and beyond, to connect with the people who need you most, and in order to do that, we need to get crystal clear on who they are.

By knowing who your ideal client is you can speak directly to them

Clarity

It’s quite a tough thing to get your head around, but really, nothing you do in terms of PR is about you. You need to have a solid idea of your ideal client’s characteristics, pain points and desires, so you can easily spot them in a crowd and talk directly to them. 

It’s always about the audience.

Think about what they read, what they love to buy, and where they are finding their information and inspiration. Once you get your head around this it makes finding and connecting with them so much easier, trust me.

And don’t forget it works both ways; you can choose your clients too, it's not just about finding wh is interested or in need! You get to choose who you want to do business with. 

So, creating this dream client profile isn’t limiting…it’s empowering!

Let’s do some digging into your dream customers to help us get clear on who they are and how we can reach them...

Understand who your audience is

Getting clear on your dream customer is key, it is vital to inform all of your PR plans. Chances are, you may have more than one, but use this activity to map them all out. 

Right ladies, grab a pen and print this document out

1. What is your target customer’s age, gender, and if you want to give them one, their name, and where do they likely live?

Really try and create a real person, so that you can get in the head of your dream client. 

2. What do you think their annual income is?

This is important, you can work out what they are willing to invest in and how much disposable income they may potentially have available.

3. What kind of things do they love? Think hobbies, social life, events they go to, ways they spend their time, products they love to buy.

This may affect what magazines they read for example, and where they hang out. 

4. What other brands do they love? Where do they shop?

This could help you pick out some hashtags that your audience uses so you can find them online, their budgets and also the best publications to target.

5. Where are they hanging out online - what social media platform are they most likely to be on?

Think about their age as this could affect which platform they are on. Maybe the type of business affects the platform. For example, a luxury brand for young adults may well be on Instagram and not LinkedIn.

6. Where are they getting their information and inspiration offline? Think specifics - tv programmes, radio shows, magazines, newspapers - which ones?

This may seem harder, but think about where you could get inspiration from using the information you already have above. Glossy magazines or lifestyle blogs, for example.

P.s. You might find you have more than one dream customer… and that’s perfectly fine, just do this exercise as many times as you need to! You may find your different products or services appeal to different people and your dream clients may vary.

Why you need clarity

Now you have completed the exercise, when you come to planning your PR, you will know exactly how to reach your dream clients, what you need to be telling them, and where you need to be putting that message.

The process of identifying your ideal customer will help you solve tonnes of business challenges including tone of voice, PR priorities such as choosing your channels and even networking.

It takes some time in the beginning, but it’s totally worth it in the long run!

The good news is when you have a clear picture of your ideal client, promoting your business becomes a lot easier and more cost-effective.

Rather than trying to be everything to everyone, you can concentrate your resources and precious time on those dream clients who are most likely to invest in you.

Want to know more, head to www.garnetpr.com/services or just be brave and apply now so we can have a chat and take your biz stratospheric!