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Who do you particularly wish to target/influence with your content?
- Prospects (or even suspects)?
- Existing customers?
- Prospects that 'look like' your best/most profitable customers?
- Clients, supporters and advocates?
- Potential employees?
- Existing employees?
- The media?
- Influencers
- Suppliers/resellers?
- Your competition?
Or is it simply the target group/niche that is most likely to be persuaded by your message.
Are they a defined segment on your database?
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What are they interested in?
Research/brainstorm what they like to read about, watch and listen to.
Decide what information would be valuable to them. This could be linked to your products/services without specifically being about them. For example, if you sell car insurance you might create content, just before the summer holidays start, on the definitive guide to driving on the Continent. Then email it out to your database, and add it to your website blog/social media.
Review/research the subject areas that you are a particular expert in - that your target audience is particularly interested in.
Keep in mind the problems that your customers have, that you can solve, and their needs, that you can fulfil.
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Understanding your buying personas
Buyer personas are essentially, fictional representations of your buyers.
In the process of researching and creating these personas, you’ll learn who your buyers are and work out how best to market to them.
To create your buyer persona
Examine each segment/niche of your existing customer base.
Pull out the traits that they have in common. Use these traits to build a fictional picture (persona) of your ideal prospect. Include as much details as possible.
- Creating your personas
- What role do they have in the buying decision (consumer marketing) or are they part of a decision making unit (b2b)?
- Understand their content needs
- Conducting interviews and research
- Why create buyer personas?
- Telling your persona’s story
