Have you heard the term buyer persona before but never understood what it really meant? A buyer persona is an integral part of your marketing strategy, so it’s important to know what it is, how to create one, and how to use it in your marketing efforts. We’ll cover the basics of buyer personas and discuss why it’s essential to have one for your business.
Buyer Persona FAQs
These are some of the most frequently asked questions when people are getting started with developing a buyer persona.
1. What are buyer personas?
A buyer persona is a semi-fictional character that represents your ideal customer. The details in a buyer persona profile are a mix of market research data and real data of your existing customers. You will gather basic demographic information along with details about their lifestyle, habits, interests, goals, and pain points.
It is normal to have more than one persona! You just need to segment your diverse target audience into groups based on common demographics and interests to ensure you create content that appeals to all of your buyer personas.
2. Why does my business need a buyer persona?
Your business needs buyer personas because every good marketing strategy needs structure! You will be able to mold your whole strategy around what your ideal customer is interested in, what makes them tick, and their purchasing process. Your business will know where to focus its marketing efforts instead of guessing and hoping for the best.
You will attract the most valuable website visitors, leads, and ultimately customers to your business by creating relevant content for your buyer persona.
3. How do I establish a buyer persona?
A lot of research is required to create an accurate buyer persona, but it’s worth it. To make sure you include the most important details in your buyer persona profile, check out this blog post. In a nutshell, here is how you will go about establishing a buyer persona for your business:
- Identify your ideal customer.
As mentioned before, creating a buyer persona requires a lot of time spent researching. So if you’re just beginning this process, then start with the type of customer that is most valuable to your business. Identify the customer who is passionate about what you do and will do business with you frequently while sharing with their peers.
- Conduct buyer persona research
You need to thoroughly research your current and ideal customers through interviews, surveys, market research, and social media insights. In your interviews and surveys, ask questions that provide insight into their lifestyle, purchasing habits, likes, dislikes, etc.
It's okay if you can’t obtain interviews or survey responses. You still have access to online market research and social media insights. Through this research, you’ll also need to uncover how they prefer to hear about brands like yours and how they consume content. Your social media insights will provide you with demographic information about their lifestyle and interests.
4. How often should I update my buyer persona profile?
Buyer personas will only help your marketing efforts be successful if they are accurate. With technology constantly evolving, you can bet that your ideal customer’s purchasing habits are too. That means you need to conduct research periodically to make note of any big changes, such as a new social media platform, search engine algorithm, or new technology. Buyer persona profiles should be revisited, and updated if needed, every 6 months or any time your business goals have changed.
The reason 6 months is ideal is because you want to collect enough data from your marketing efforts to analyze. If you aren't seeing the results you expected, then you can optimize your buyer persona profile. If you don't provide enough time to gather accurate data, then you may be making unnecessary changes. Plus, your brand should be consistent with its marketing messaging, so you don't want to switch gears too often or too quickly.
Buyer personas are an essential part of your marketing strategy because they help you understand your ideal customer’s way of thinking and their lifestyle. They can simplify and clarify your marketing strategy so that you make the most out of your content.
Don't have the time to research and create a buyer persona? Schedule a quick chat with one of our marketing experts to find out how we can help you!
