Identifying your ideal client is key to the success of your company. There are many pieces of information that you can research to identify these factors. The specific combination of characteristics will act as a compass that will influence all business decisions.

The first thing to do is to brainstorm your ideal client. Think about their goals, needs, and pain points. Also, consider their gender, age, location, and other relevant details. Your profile should include both demographic and psychographic information. 

Sure, you could market to lots of different people, but one group will be ideal. These people will quickly see the value in your product or service, and they will have the time and money to buy from you. Once you know this group, you can build your visual identity and message in a way that attracts them explicitly to your product or service.

But what if you’re not sure who your ideal customers are? Here are five ways to do research.

1-Current Customers

Your current customers are the best source of valid data on the characteristics of your ideal clients. Whether you have three or 3,000 customers, take some time to review what they have in common. Look for any identifiable features and demographic data, like age, gender, or location. Or it may be shared interests or worldviews. 

As you piece together a profile of your current customers, make sure you focus on your best customers. These are the customers that love you, are eager to hear from you, and would be likely to speak highly of your product or service. These are clients who are easy to work with and are ready to pay.

2-Social Media

If you already have a social media following, you can gather details about your customers there. 

Facebook Insights will give you demographic data on the people that are interacting and engaging with your pages. This data includes age group, interests, gender, and location. Twitter and Instagram have similar analytical tools that will give you demographic data from their sites. 

Demographics aren’t the only insight you should be getting from social media analytics. These sites will also give you stats on which type of content receives the most engagement to give you an idea about what they care for the most. 

Collect these data points and put them together to create an image of your ideal client. 

3-Google Analytics

If you have your website up and get traffic, make sure that you have Google Analytics installed. Analytics contains a wealth of information about website visitors, leading you to understand your ideal clients better.

Some of this data is straightforward. For example, you can see where your web visitors are located. 

Some insights you need to extrapolate on your own; for example, Google will tell you what pages are popular on your website. The most popular pages will allow you to determine what information and content most interests your ideal clients. 

4-Competitor Research 

Competitor information is a great place to strengthen the understanding of the persona of your ideal client. The social media pages of your competition are a good place to start. You will identify what content they are posting, which social channels are most engaged with, and their message’s tone. 

It’s also beneficial to check out their website to see what type of content is being highlighted. Before you leave a competitor’s site, browse through their blog topics and identify their key issues. This data will paint a picture of what your competition believes their ideal client is. 

Compare the competition’s client with yours and see how closely they align. It can be challenging to directly compete with a well-established competitor to attract the same customers. But maybe there’s a group they’re not focused on who would be ideal customers for you.

5-Associations and Industry Data

If your product or service is focused on a specific industry or niche, you may find data from associations or industry groups that will help you understand your likely customers. You can Google data on the typical age and gender of many groups such as runners, vegans, video gamers, actuaries, registered nurses, etc.

Some associations put together profiles of their members. Or they publicize profiles of their industry.

Summarize your Ideal Clients 

The data you collect from these sources should come together into your typical and most ideal client profile. 

Branding Compass can help you pull all these insights together into a complete and highly visual profile that’s easy to share with others.