INSIGHT PAUL REES ASSOCIATES HOW TO BUILD A BRAND
unique needs and preferences of your target customer segments and to build competitive advantage by catering to specific niches or segments that may be underserved by larger competitors.
While SMEs may not conduct segmentation on the same scale as larger enterprises, adopting a simplified and practical approach to segmentation can still yield significant benefits. SMEs can start by identifying key characteristics of their customer base and tailor their strategies to address the unique needs of different segments within their market.
Once you have identified your target segments, it’s beneficial to prioritise segments that offer the best opportunities for your business.
Ideal Customer Profiles
For B2B (business-to-business) companies I find it useful to identify Ideal Customer Profiles (ICPs), which are comprehensive descriptions of the types of companies that a business would gain the most benefit from targeting and serving.
Creating ICPs helps businesses focus their marketing, sales, and product development efforts on attracting and retaining the most valuable customers.
During customer workshops that I undertake with clients, we build ICPs by considering factors such as industry and sector, company size, geographic location, technology used, budget, company challenges, key decision makers, and their buying process.
Creating well-defined ICPs is subsequently very helpful in guiding marketing, sales, and business development efforts, leading to more targeted and effective outreach.
Identifying key personas
Once the ICPs have been developed, it is beneficial to identify the key personas for each ICP. Personas are a detailed representation of the different user types that might use your product or service, or be involved in the purchase decision.
Tese personas should encapsulate the characteristics, needs, preferences, and behaviours of individuals within each ideal company type, which helps to humanise your target audience and guides your marketing and sales efforts.
I normally undertake this work within a customer workshop once ICPs have been captured, and typically for B2B companies, the key factors to cover are usually demographics such as age, gender, and role, psychographics such as likely interests and attitudes, their needs and pain points, goals, buying role, and marketing preferences.
P26 WIRE / PULSE / INSIGHT / REPORTS
Once you have defined your customer targeting, the next key stage of developing a strong brand is shaping a Unique Value Proposition (or brand positioning), which I’ll cover off in next month’s magazine.
Understanding your target customer(s), together with a good insight into your competitors and how you compare, are two of the key inputs into shaping your Unique Value Proposition, which helps articulate your differentiated offer that effectively addresses customer needs, stands out in the market, and forms a foundation for strategic communication and brand development.
In summary, identifying your target customers is a strategic imperative for your business as it enhances marketing effectiveness, improves communication, informs product development, streamlines lead generation, facilitates sales alignment, optimises resource allocation, and provides a competitive edge in the market.
Te benefits of developing personas are that it allows you to target your efforts to the right people, tailor your marketing messaging to ensure that you resonate with them, and to concentrate your sales efforts on prospects that are most likely to convert. By understanding their pain points/needs, you can align your offer and messaging to them, whilst clearly conveying your product benefits, through the right marketing channels that you know will reach them.
The benefits of developing
personas are that it allows you to target your efforts to the right people, tailor your marketing messaging to
ensure that you resonate with them, and to concentrate your sales efforts on prospects that are most likely to convert. By understanding their pain
points/needs, you can align your offer and messaging to
them, whilst clearly conveying your product benefits, through the right marketing channels that you know will reach them.
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