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We’ve all heard, “The more we know who our market is, the better.” How true is this? In a word… extremely. After all, if you don’t know who you’re marketing to, you will likely throw a bunch of stuff on the wall, hoping something sticks. Recently, I hosted a live event in Portland. I was thrilled when we sold out over a month before the event. I couldn’t have been more pleased with the caliber of those in attendance. They definitely fit my ideal avatar. This didn’t happen by chance. It happened from knowing who I wanted in the room and focusing on getting my message out to this specific market. Spending time identifying who you want to do business with AND equally imWe’ve all heard, “The more we know who our market is, the better.” How true is this? In a word… extremely. After all, if you don’t know who you’re marketing to, you will likely throw a bunch of stuff on the wall, hoping something sticks. Recently, I hosted a live eventin Portland, Oregon. I was thrilled when we sold out over a month before the event. I couldn’t have been more pleased with the caliber of those in attendance. They definitely fit my ideal avatar. This didn’t happen by chance. It happened from knowing who I wanted in the room and focusing on getting my message out to this specific market. Spending time identifying who you want to do business with AND equally important, who wants to do business with you, is essential to your success. Most entrepreneurs put some effort into the first part; who they want to do business with, but have not even considered who might, or might not, want to do business with them. Who Does, And Does NOT, Want to Do Business with You I fully understand there are people who definitely want to do business with me, but I’m equally clear on the fact there are those who would never do business with me. Are you? To assure you are focusing your marketing and visibility efforts in the right direction, the first place to start is to spend time thinking about the many aspects of your sweet spot avatar. Not doing so means your efforts will be incredibly diluted when you market any of your services and products. Doing so means you will likely get a much higher ROI – Return On Investment. It Takes Work to Get it Right Recently, I asked a group of 40 female entrepreneurs to describe their ideal clients. Several responded with, “Women over the age of 40.” or “Men who exercise.” or “Entrepreneurs.” That was it. No wonder they are struggling. Others had a very clear handle on who they are marketing to. Some people are so stuck on not boxing themselves into a specific market, they resist putting time into this process. I recall one conversation with a woman who was struggling in her business. “I don’t believe in doing this. I personally don’t care how old they are, what they like to read, what podcast shows they listen to, what their hobbies are or any of that crap,” she held tight to her position. “Every business coach I’ve had insists I need to do this, but I just don’t see the point,” she defended her position. Amazing. She hired coach after coach to show her how to build her business, and the one thing they all recommended, she resisted. Ironically, it was the very step that if she took it, would likely make a huge difference to her bottom-line. Putting time into defining your market is huge. To not do so is simply foolish. It’s also something that you will likely do several times over the course of your business. As you grow and change, who you do business with will likely change. Recently, I spent quite a bit of time evaluating this is my business. Within a couple of hours I had over five pages of information. Will I use all of this in every bit of marketing material I create? No, but it gives me a great resource to draw from as I write sales copy, landing pages, direct mail pieces, postcard copy, etc. A Glimpse Into My Ideal Avatar To give you an idea of the types of things I focused on, here is a snapshot of some of what I came up with. Business She is very business savvy and understands the need to stay on the leading edge of her industry through hiring business mentors, attending workshops and seminars, reading books and investing in training programs. She is willing to do the work. She loves animals and is very into rescue causes. She likely has one or two rescues of her own. She has had a colorful life that she derived many life lessons from. People look to her for guidance. She can appear to be standoffish when, in reality, she is simply a deep thinker. She is very organized and knows the importance of having a support team in place. Online marketing knowledge She has a working understanding of online marketing, but is not a tech whiz. She understands the importance of having a working knowledge, but also understands that it is more cost effective and beneficial to outsource much of the work that requires technical skills. She has an interest is learning what she needs to learn to be able to delegate, but is not attached to doing the work herself. Health and fitness She is very healthy emotionally. When she hires a business coach she wants a business coach, not a therapist. She eats a healthy diet but is not a fanatic about it. She doesn’t do any drugs like smoking pot and may have a social drink but is not a heavy drinker. If she does not drink she never passes judgement on those who do. She is much more youthful and vibrant than her chronological years would indicate. She feels great about herself and knows when she takes care of herself she can accomplish a lot in her day and life. She takes very good care of her body and pushes herself to extremes. She is very motivated with anything she does. Her word is golden. If she says she will do something she does it. She has a very positive, but not Pollyanna attitude. She likes to hike, hang out with friends outdoors and get involved in important community causes. Her physical wellbeing is very important to her. She is willing to forego unhealthy habits and behaviors in favor of feeling great, looking great and having a vibrancy reserved for those who are willing to put effort into their health. Skills and talents She is an accomplished writer, speaker and very worldly. Her goal is to write books that will not only position her as an expert, but teach life lessons. She is aware that she must work to get the word out about her book. She believes that the best way to become an expert at something is to immerse herself into it. Unique qualities She is very motivated and when something strikes her interest and fancy, she will immerse herself into learning as much about it as possible. Her past is somewhat colorful which gives her the flare she has for living with gusto. She is very generous when she sees a need that she can be instrumental in filling. She could take or leave television, but when she does watch it she is interested in documentaries, whistle blower movies like Food, Inc., etc. She makes purchases online for the sake of time and convenience. She is very curious about how energy works and is willing to invest time and money exploring various modes. She enjoys new age music, some disco, some rock and roll and energizing music to work out by. Clarity Helps With Marketing This is just a bit of what I came up with. And to think there are five pages of information. Here’s the deal, taking time to come up with such a detailed description definitely helps me in my marketing efforts. Additionally, if you have studied the Law of Attraction, you know by being this clear, it is more likely you will “notice” when the right people show up for your products and services. This is incredibly important when you enroll individuals in your higher end programs. The more of a match there is, the more everyone concerned will gain from the experience. About Author- Kathleen Gage is the "no-nonsense, common sense" online marketing strategist, speaker, author, product creation specialist and who helps entrepreneurs make money online. Successfully self-employed since 1994, she gives her clients the tools to create businesses that last and make a difference at the same time. For more please visit. http://www.kathleengage.com http://www.powerupforprofits.com
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