| One of the best ways to waste a lot of money on | | | | real close, objective look at the customer base lately. |
| marketing is to set your sites on the wrong prospects. | | | | Things change, and when you're involved in it |
| And doing this is easier than you might think. | | | | day-to-day the changes are often not so noticeable. |
| Fortunately, it's also easy to avoid. | | | | So, it's important to look at the numbers, identify your |
| The reason marketers take off after the wrong | | | | most profitable customers and find out what they |
| prospects has to do with perception versus reality. | | | | have in common - industry, annual revenue, number of |
| The people or companies we think are our ideal | | | | employees, geographic location, number of purchase |
| prospects may not be. Before you jump into any | | | | orders they write a month - whatever is appropriate to |
| marketing program, let's be sure you're aiming at the | | | | your product or service. |
| right target. | | | | Companies don't buy - people do. |
| Your best customers reveal your best prospects. | | | | Now you've got a good, clear idea of what types of |
| Your existing client base holds a wealth of information | | | | companies make your best customers and you've |
| about who makes a good target prospect. Unless you | | | | taken the first step towards describing your ideal |
| are launching a totally new product line into a totally | | | | prospect. You've also probably found some good |
| new market with no connection to your existing | | | | places to target a marketing effort. |
| business, you'll learn a lot by taking a close look at your | | | | But let's not stop here. Now that you know the types |
| current clients. Actually, even if you ARE introducing a | | | | of companies that make up your ideal customer pool, |
| totally new product into a totally new market, this | | | | let's take a look at the individuals to whom you sell. |
| exercise is more than worth the time you'll spend on it. | | | | Again, what do they have in common with each |
| The objective is to identify a group of customers who | | | | other? Here's a quick checklist of things to consider: |
| are most profitable and easiest to work with and then | | | | Job title |
| to figure out what they have in common. If possible, | | | | Age |
| you want to do this with actual quantifiable data - not | | | | Sex |
| just with anecdotal evidence from your sales force or | | | | Education |
| account management teams. | | | | Number of years of experience |
| Really. Take the time to pull the data and analyze it. | | | | Achievements |
| If you're lucky, all you have to do is get a report from | | | | Associations |
| your accounting department. But you're probably going | | | | Primary language |
| to have to do some of your own sorting. | | | | Resistance to risk |
| It may not be who you think. | | | | Decision-making style |
| If you've never actually done this exercise before, you | | | | Professional challenges |
| might be in for a surprise. I've had clients tell me their | | | | Values |
| customer base was primarily Fortune 1000 | | | | Goals |
| pharmaceutical or oil & gas companies only to find | | | | Roll all of this together to create a profile of your ideal |
| when the numbers were run that the bulk of their | | | | customer. That's a pretty good place to start to |
| business was coming from regional insurance | | | | describe your ideal prospect. Doesn't it just make |
| companies. And clients who believe their sweet spot is | | | | sense to go after more of the people who make you |
| companies with more than 5000 employees when in | | | | most successful today? |
| reality their best customers have 500 to 2500 | | | | This information is very valuable. Share this with |
| employees. And clients who think corporations provide | | | | anyone and everyone who is developing marketing |
| the bulk of their business when actually academic | | | | programs or materials for you. |
| institutions do. And so on. | | | | Now you know you're chasing the right people. |
| My clients aren't lying to me. They just haven't taken a | | | | |