Crafting Your Ideal Target Client or Customer Persona: 25 Questions to Ask Yourself in the Branding Process
Everyone talks about the dreamy, ideal client persona, and if you aren't searching for it or running after it, you've already lost, right? Well, while I wouldn't want to spook you, there's some very real truth to that.
When we aim for a target persona, we are better clarifying our desires to our potential clients or customers. We create a vision of who we want to serve, and indirectly, the people that we desire to become / the kind of service or product creator that we strive to be.
When considering your target persona, there's a few questions you can ask to help you narrow and really hone in on the wonderful beauty of your ideal individual!
1. What is their gender?
2. What is their age? What defines their age group and what are the world issues and trends associated with this age group's generation (for example, millennials and selfies, the rise of tech, also known as the most entrepreneurial generation yet).
3. What is their occupation?
4. What is their annual income? (Note if this is individual or household with a spouse).
5. What is their education level?
6. Are they married?
7. Do they have children?
8. Where do they live? Either specific places or location descriptors such as city, rural, etc.
9. What books and magazines do they read?
10. Where do they eat when they go out?
11. Where do they travel for vacation?
12. How do they spend their time?
13. Where do they get their info (TV news, radio, blogs, social media, etc.)?
14. What is their lifestyle (active, couch potato, adventurer, etc.)?
15. Do they play sports?
16. What is their social life like (loner, social butterfly, family, friends, etc.)?
17. What do they spend their money on?
18. Where do they shop?
19. Do they go to the theatre?
20. What philanthropic causes are they involved with or wish to become more involved in?
21. Do you notice any religious or political leanings?
22. What values or personality traits are most important to them? Justice, honesty, humor?
23. What do they lay awake at night worrying about?
24. What are they looking for by hiring you/buying your product? What is their wish?
25. What is their problem, what are they looking to solve (their external problem)? Go deeper: what is their internal problem (emotional problem, for example: doubt or fear)? What is the philosophical problem associated with their struggle (for example: poverty, self-confidence and worthiness, the list goes on)?
By starting with these 25 questions, you can go pretty deep into crafting your ideal persona and begin creating a narrative around this individual that then helps you serve your clients or customers better by focusing on their desires and goals. You can even name them if you wish (one of ours is Manager Marty)! Pretty neat, huh?
Please drop any branding questions in the comments below, I’d love to answer them! :)
