Know Who Your Ideal Clients Are For Success in Business

One of the subjects which transits across all types of businesses no matter the size, level, or years in actual business, is to know who your client is. Most of you know this fact, or have heard this statement before.

Is it possible you never thought about why this is important to the ultimate success of your business?

In the larger corporate setting have you witnessed a company which takes a direction that is not in tune with their ideal client definition, and there is a backlash against their ‘new’ product or offering? Some examples are Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Burger King, HP, and Blackberry (there are numerous other examples).

In the medium to small business setting have you seen a business partner with another business or create a business line not congruent with how they are thought of by their loyal clients only to have to rethink the entire strategy? A few which come to mind for me are the local waste removal company who started an accounting offer and tax preparation service, the restaurant owner who began to offer asphalt paving services, the high end clothes store which opened a discount maternity store next door.

In each of these examples, there was no natural synergy between the first successful business and the new start-up business. This is not to say that it is not possible to begin another business totally unrelated to your core business. It is important to recognize you will achieve little or no upside following from your current ideal client group to a new unrelated business, and you risk damaging your brand with another type of business unrelated to the core business which you are known for.

For a start up venture, or for a new or growing entrepreneurial company, the ideal client definition is absolutely critical. Similar to the above discussions, the following applies to each of the categories.

• How will you conduct your marketing?
• Where will you conduct your marketing?
• What is the marketing budget you have available?

All of these questions are impacted by your dialed in ideal client definition or your lack of one.

If you doubt this, consider how the internet has created the ability for anyone to rapidly reach their ideal client group. The definitions are there – age, sex, geography, education level, and much more. You now have the ability to hone in your message for your ideal client to see it. The words you utilize in your message must be written with your ideal client in mind. Otherwise the ability to utilize the internet will be lost with an unclear message.

Any type of business, and any sized business, must understand and define their ideal client. Are you ready to recheck your ideal client definition? Does your marketing and messaging need a review to see if you are reaching your ideal client group?

Contact Mitch Tublin today, www.thementorguy.com.