So, in addition to the generalist target, we have the ICP – Ideal Customer Profile and the persona. It is common for there to be some confusion in the interpretation saudi arabia companies email list of the concepts. Let's understand the difference between target, ICP and persona and how we can apply them correctly in the Marketing strategies of your Information Technology company.
Target
Target or target audience is a demographic, socioeconomic and behavioral segment of a large group of people for whom your IT company's products and services may be useful. It is the most generic concept, useful for a quick understanding of who the company is targeting. Depending on your specific reality, to define a target consider data such as:
Gender and age
Location
Function
Likes and interests
Sector of activity and size (turnover and/or number of employees) of the company where you work
ICP
The ICP – Ideal Customer Profile is a description that sums up, as the name suggests, your Ideal Customer. Someone who identifies with your IT company, who is committed, who sees value and usability in your product/service and whose needs are met with good results. You need more of these and for this they must be very well described in order to facilitate the search for similar customers and to more easily understand the “fit” when you receive a request for a proposal or have a situation diagnosis meeting to present it. In addition to the data that corresponds to the Target and which is therefore automatically part of the ICP, we must answer questions such as:
What is the level of technological maturity of my current customers? What do they value most in the service provided/solution provided? What specific characteristics do they have that make my product/service make sense and provide them with maximum value?
Which Clients have had the most success stories or highest retention and upsell/cross-sell and why?
What is the normal sales cycle when everything goes well? Who does it involve?
On average, what is the average ticket for my Customers?
The set of responses allows you to create a qualification scale so that you can invest time and resources in potential Customers who have the profile of your Ideal Customer.
The data you have about your current customers is essential to help you create your ideal customer and set a direction. Remember that the ICP definition should be updated as the market, supply and consumer behavior change. In this sense, the ICP definition serves as an exercise to remind you who your IT company wants to have as customers and, of course, to guide your marketing strategies.
Persona
Personas are characters that represent your typical interlocutors and are built from real people with similar characteristics, qualities and behaviors, allowing you to have a detailed idea of who your potential Customer is and what they are looking for. To create a persona, you need to carry out research and brainstorming to gather information such as:
Gender and age
Function
Sectors of activity of the company where you work
Training
Position in the company
Geographies
Role in purchasing
Average time to decide to buy
Habits, hobbies, lifestyle
Challenges, goals, desires and aspirations
Frustrations, pains and difficulties you face in your daily life
What media do you consume, where do you look for information to stay up to date?
What types of content are you interested in?
Who influences you?
What technologies do you use?
Criteria you typically use to decide
Objections that are usually raised during the purchasing process
Personas are the foundation of everything. Content is planned, produced and disseminated (regardless of the format or channel) to impact and respond to their problems and ambitions, so it is very important to have them well defined, combining insights from those who deal with potential customers and clients on the ground, as well as from the customer themselves whenever possible.