When Growing Your Business, What Does An Ideal Client Look Like? Well, That Depends.

When you are playing darts, where do you aim?

In the middle of course!  That’s where you get the most points.  That’s where your excitement and confidence get boosted.  That’s when you pick up another dart and want to do it again.

That’s the sweet spot.

What happens if you were to aim at the outer rings?  You would still get points for sure, but you would be spending your time, energy and efforts on being just “ok”.

What happens if you never hit the middle?  Do you get discouraged?  Don’t care?  Aren’t having fun?  Does it make you want to quit?

Every business has an ideal client.  A bullseye client that you should be aiming for.

While we are all in the pet industry and our ideal client can be built around the type of animals someone has, where they live, what type of services they need etc, sometimes it’s hard to see it clearly when we are immersed in it.

I am going to take a step outside of the box and show you an example from a different industry.

Grocery Stores.  We all go to some type of market to buy food.

I know when I am checking out, I often get asked “did you find everything on your list?”.  Usually my answer is “Yes, and then some” Which is exactly what they want to hear.

The ideal client for a grocery store is NOT someone who stops in to buy 1 item.

Do they like that client – of course they do!
Will they be happy to serve that client – of course they will!
Will they turn that person away at the door – of course not!

The topic of finding your ideal client is NOT finding your ONLY client.

However, the grocery store is not going to spend big dollars marketing to the client who only comes in for 1 item.    It is doubtful that someone is going to come in for a gallon of milk based on their marketing efforts.

They are going to come in REGARDLESS of their marketing efforts.

3 POSSIBLE IDEAL AVATAR PERSONALITIES FOR A GROCERY STORE:

1. Thanksgiving will be here before you know it!  From the tablecloth to the turkey – we’ll help you impress your mother-in-law!
2. Planning a large holiday party?  Get all of your ingredients for your sweet and savory dishes!
3. Tailgating?  We have a great deli selection for hoagies and don’t forget the chips and dip!  Try all of the new Lay’s flavors and pick your favorite!

For their marketing efforts, the store is going to focus on the above ideal clients.  That’s who they want to get into the store.  That’s their bullseye of their marketing target.  Will other people come into the store?  Of course they will.

That’s the secondary ripple effect of marketing.  If you aim for the center bullseye and miss, you are still going to hit something.

It’s aiming for your IDEAL client, NOT your only client.

Here comes the turning point – can that person who just came in for a gallon of milk BECOME an ideal client?

For sure!

Maybe the store is super convenient for them.
Maybe the staff knocked it out of the park with their customer service.
Maybe they stock a brand of locally sourced milk that speaks to the client.
Maybe they saw a commercial and thought “wow, I didn’t realize they had such a wide selection”.

Wondering how to accurately identify your ideal client?  Take the assessment in this article to start formulating an ideal client avatar and then we’ll look at ways to market specifically to that person!