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Identifying Your Ideal Customer Types (Client Avatars)
When first starting my business, I took a very basic, grassroots approach to business growth & marketing. I identified a need that I could fill and then got to work. I did everything I could (which by today's standards wasn't much) to spread the word and spent little to nothing on paid advertising. I guess you could call that Guerilla marketing 101.
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With time, I learned to identify the kinds of people or types of people that I was best equipped to serve or help. From there, I slowly shifted my focus to building with them in mind. This made everything much easier for me and I'm confident it will do the same for you.
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Today, marketers and advertisers often refer to these people as - client avatars and ideal customer types.
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Even if you were completely unfamiliar with the terms or labels, it's important to recognize that there are certain types of people who are naturally attracted to your "business style." Your favorite clients and customers fit certain profiles. In fact, you can usually find 2 to 3 customer types that you're already attracting.
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Who Are Your True Clients, Fans, or Customers?
Getting clear on who these people are makes everything so much easier. For example, for years my ideal client was the type of person who didn't want to be bothered logging into their website unless they were absolutely, positively forced to do so. My ideal clients were "done-for-them" individuals that were already high-achievers in their areas of expertise.
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Eventually, I began creating products for beginners and do-it-yourselfers, too. From there, I began incorporating what I like to call "before and after" messaging. In other words, this is what it's like for you today... and this is what it will be like for you tomorrow when we work together to solve your problems. That's - before and after.
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Mutually Beneficial Relationships
Marketing has always been about developing mutually beneficial relationships. That will never change. It's just so much easier growing your business when you're able to add the kind of people you enjoy working with to your client list. This is why identifying who these people are upfront is so important. From there, everything you create going forward will be done with these individuals in mind.
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When we combine things like your gift mix, your experience, and your personality, you bring a unique experience to the table - even if you are in a crowded marketplace. Whether you've already realized this or not, this is why certain people choose to take their business journey with YOU instead of your competitors.
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Customer Relationship Management Software
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Is having a CRM tool (also known as customer relationship management software) beneficial to the average digital business owner? Three years after first asking this question, I still don't have a definite answer... but I will share with you what I learned after testing almost a dozen different options.
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Why Do You Need it?
It almost seems like a stupid question, "Why?" The answer is obviously, to have a better relationship with your customers or clients. What does that actually mean, though? Back in the day, I kept notes on the people who worked for me (in person) so I didn't have to commit things to memory. I'm talking about small details like what type of coffee they drank or their favorite lunch sandwiches. Of course, those were people I interacted with daily.
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Fast-forwarding to now... do I need a CRM tool to keep track of my client's favorite lunch sandwiches? Is it important to remember that Joe hates mayonnaise? No. If I were a traveling salesman, I'd keep notes on everyone... but I'm not.
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For consulting, I started using a tool called Profi (https://www.profi.io) a few years ago. It, too, has a space for notes.
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Email Communication
All of the CRM programs I've tested come with email marketing tools. That makes sense. One had a newsletter designer matched with a standard email tool for sending proposals and invoices. And by the way, the tool in question also came with a proposal maker, a contract generator, and the ability to digitally sign both.
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Two of the tools I tested did just about everything under a single roof.
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Here are the links to both in case you want to check them out for yourself -
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Perfex (An Open Source CRM $59)
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When I say, "just about everything," that's exactly what I mean. I'm talking about billing, project management, documents with digital signing, marketing, etc.
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The question is, do you need all of this (and if so), and do you need it all under one roof with a single login?
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CRM Tools in 2022 - Yes or No?
Like many things in life, the answer to the question (should you be using a CRM tool, and are you at a disadvantage by not using one) is - it really depends.
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For some of you, sending out a monthly email to your clients may be enough to keep you from falling into the out-of-site, out-of-mind category. Remember, at any given time, there may be one or more competitors whispering into your client's ears telling them why you're no longer bringing them the best ROI. That's the whole idea behind not letting your customer relationships fall through the cracks.
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Personally, I take the time to create videos (ongoing) to communicate certain things to my clients. That, in my opinion, has been the best relationship tool for my use case. Plus, none of my direct competitors do this. However, I don't do this for every single client.
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If I were selling dozens of different products (along the lines of an eCommerce business) and had a minimum of four full-time employees, I'd go with a full-fledged CRM solution. This would allow me to centralize all my communications and campaigns in one place with multiple people. So, it really depends on your business model.
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For most Solopreneurs and small business owners, I think a solid email marketing tool with the ability to keep notes on clients or customers may be all you need.
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Okay, that's about it for now. I hope you enjoyed this issue. Have a great rest of your day and I'll talk to you later!
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For more information, please visit:
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