Customer Avatar

Customer Avatar

Why do you need this?

You need a customer avatar so you understand to who you’re trying to sell—the perfect customer who will spend big, make repeat purchases, and promote your business to others.   

The avatar is basically an imaginary person who represents a segment of your market. 

When you create content, ads, emails, products, etc.  you are talking to this person.

Overview

Creating a Customer Avatar

step 1

Choose a distinct segment of your customers.

market segment:

step 2

Enter all the demographic information you have on your avatar.

a. Age b. Gender c. Marital status d. Number/age of children e. Location f. Occupation / job title g. Annual income h. Level of education i. Quote that sums up their feelings related to the problem/goal most closely related to your product j. Brands or influencers they follow or engage with k. Where they get information (books, blogs, forums, conferences & events, etc.)

None of this is meant to be a definitive description. It’s simply a way to make your customer avatar REAL.

step 3

Now lets figure out their frustrations & fears

a. What keeps them up at night? b. What annoys and/or frustrates them? c. What challenges do they face on a daily basis, big and small? d. Who or what is standing in the way of their success and happiness? e. What are some key systems in their life/job that frequently fail? f. What’s something they’re forced to interact with that’s difficult to manage or to understand? g. What feature (or lack of features) do they regularly complain about in related products or services?

step 4

Name several things your customer avatar wants that they don’t have yet.

a. What do they want for themselves? b. What do they want for the people around them (family, friends, coworkers, employees, etc.)? c. What do they aspire to be? d. What goals have they set for themselves? e. What values do they hold dear? f. What are their “secret” desires?

TIP: Should relate to the product you sell or the offer you’re making. Don’t get distracted by unrelated goals.

For instance, if they want to lose 25 pounds, that’s relevant to a weight-loss shake but not to digital marketing services.

Keep in mind, most people, though they want things, have values that keep them grounded.

So while you think about their goals, try to get in their heads and think about what they value as well and how their values affect the things they want and the goals they set for themselves.

step 5

Key Purchase Drivers.

a. Must-have features b. Expectations of service c. Quality expectations d. Are there any known deal-killers? e. What are some common objections that must be overcome? f. Any additional stakeholders or decision-makers?

Key Objections

Place your elephants in the room here:

step 6

Use Google search  to flesh out avatar and fill in gaps

“[competitor] vs.”

Repeat this process again and again to create a list of competitors. Then visit their websites, read their sales copy, and look at who they’re targeting.

From what you see, you can glean more useful information about your customer avatar: More sources of information Objections you haven’t thought about.

Things they’re striving for. Things they’re trying to move away from. Who the decision-maker might be (and possibly how to address them)

Regularly check in on your Customer Avatar Canvas to make sure it’s as up-to-date as possible.

step 7

Define your avatar’s “before” and “after” states

What is an AVERAGE DAY like for your prospect in the before state?

What is an AVERAGE DAY like for your prospect in the after state?