Page 41 - Duct Tape Marketing

25Chapter 2: All About Customers

Start by defining who isn’t a prospect for your product

Sometimes the easiest way to start your customer profiling is to think about
who isn’t likely to buy from your business.

ߜ A manufacturer of swing sets knows that its customers aren’t young pro-
fessional couples living in urban lofts. It needs to talk to families whose
homes have backyards.

ߜ A landscape and nursery business knows that it won’t find many cus-
tomers in downtown high-rise apartments.

ߜ A manufacturer of architectural siding may decide that its buyer isn’t
the end user — or homeowner — at all. Rather, the customer is the
architect who specifies the product in the first place.

ߜ A homebuilder specializing in custom-built family houses with price tags
starting at $300,000 can be pretty certain that its customers aren’t young
families getting ready to dive into home ownership for the first time; nor
are they families currently living in neighborhoods full of million-dollar
homes. Instead, the builder might narrow its focus to 30- to 40-year-old
individuals or couples with at least one child, who currently live in homes
they own but who are seeking to move to nicer residences in areas with
higher prestige than those provided by their current addresses.

Look at what your customers have in common

Particularly, study the tendencies of your best customers — the ones who
account for the fewest service problems and the greatest profits. Make a list
of their common traits by answering the following questions:

ߜ Do they buy on impulse or after careful consideration?

ߜ Are they cost-conscious or more interested in the quality and prestige of
the purchase?

ߜ Are they loyal shoppers who buy from you on a frequent basis or are
they one-time buyers?

ߜ Do they buy from your business exclusively or do they also patronize
your competitors?

ߜ Do they reach you through a certain channel — for example, your satel-
lite office or your Web site — or do they contact you via referrals from
other businesses or professionals?

A retailer in a vacation destination area might categorize its customers into
the following subgroups:

ߜ Geographic origin: Local residents, in-state visitors, out-of-state visitors,
international visitors

ߜ Activity interest: Golfers, skiers, campers, business travelers/convention
guests