In trying to understand who our ideal client is we must also figure out how we can best serve them and their needs. What are their biggest challenges and pain points that you can solve?
Chances are you’ve developed at least a simple client avatar. You know their business, their age, their income and education levels. You know where they live and what their biggest dreams are.
But do you really know what drives them?
We’re not talking about just what they want (we all want more money and free time) but more importantly, you need to know what their biggest pain points are. What keeps them up at night? Figure this out, and you’ll not only be able to better create products and services to help them, but your sales copy will dramatically improve as well.
Think about it—if you’re uncomfortable with technology but one day found yourself in a DIY mood which resulted in you accidently destroying your website during a simple update, then WordPress website management might become a huge pain point for you, right? Now imagine you find a marketing firm who not only works with WordPress, but who calmly shares examples of how they’ve rescued client websites after such disasters.
They clearly addressed your biggest pain point, and you’re sold!
The same is true for your potential clients. Show them you can help them avoid those pain points—or better yet, eliminate them completely—and you’ll forge an instant bond.
Now you may already have a good idea what causes your clients pain, but if not, you have plenty of ways to find out.
- Talk to them. What do they most often ask or complain about?
- Listen in on forums, on social media, threads like Quora or Reddit and other places your audience hangs out. What are they struggling with?
- Reader surveys. These can be a rich source of information in any market. Pay special attention to the words and phrases your readers use to describe their troubles.
- Keep an eye on your competition. What pain points are they addressing?
- Google, it and do research. Find out what your potential customers are reading?
You might be thinking how can I find out what people are reading? Look at trade magazines, blogs and/or local newspapers. See what topics are being covered and you’ll probably be getting closer to the information you need.
Once you’ve uncovered your ideal clients’ biggest challenges, you’ll have a powerful tool that you can use in your offerings. They will feel like you are speaking directly to them when they read your copy, see your ads or watch your videos.
If you can help your clients overcome the most painful issues they face—whether it’s a lack of self-confidence or a fear of public speaking—you’ll instantly become a more valuable resource to them. This will result in sales conversions for your business and everyone wins.
