Figuring Out Marketing: Who's My Customer and How Do I Make them Happy???

Starting a business or growing one without knowing exactly who your customer is feels like throwing darts blindfolded. You might hit the target by chance, but most of the time, you’ll miss. Or better yet- if you're anything like me and haven't thrown a dart ever, (let alone blindfolded) then you are probably sweating bullets and just praying you hit the board and not the person behind you.

You rack your brain over and over again for how to get more customers. You make the same sales pitch and keep posting the same thing online... but if you miss your target, it’s like throwing that dart at the wrong person. They’re yelling, their friends are laughing,you’re mortified, and now that guy definitely won't be buying anything from you.

That’s why it's critical that we take the time to understand your target market and create a detailed customer avatar. It's the foundation of any successful marketing effort. At a minimum, we have to make sure we're facing the right way when we throw the dart, and at best we want to hit the center!

This post is going to walk you through practical steps to help you identify your ideal customer and learn how to meet their needs.

Why Knowing Your Customer Matters

We want to make everyone happy. If you're the type of person who is bringing a product into the world to make someone's life easier, happier, cozier, whatever, then it comes as no surprise you want people to be pleased. We fantasize that our products will change EVERYONE'S life for the better. Unfortunately, though, in the same way not everyone will like you, not everyone will like your product. That's why you want to figure out who will LOVE your product. Yes, as time goes on we want to have as much reach as possible and touch as many people as we can with our product, but first, we want to focus in and make sure we're hitting the people that NEED and will LOVE the product first.

If you don’t know who wants your product, there's a good chance you'll waste your time, money, and energy marketing to people who aren't interested. That's a lot of preventable heartache. In this day and age with so many resources to empower us, we want to focus on lifting ourselves up and connecting with the people who will appreciate the vision we're bringing into the world.

Let's do a little guided practice. Let's say we have a candle brand. Our vision is to sell refined scents that don't overwhelm the room using local products that we source from the beekeepers down the street, and we create our own essential oils by processing the flowers you've grown in your yard all summer (thanks for buying the bags of fertilizer and taking such good care of the plants xoxo). We're very passionate about aesthetics, so our candles come in lovely glass containers. To be sustainable, we're thinking customers can drop off their empty containers for 15% off. Who is going to LOVE our product?

A) Carson: Loves all things aesthetic. Has 2 cats and really focuses on the quality of items she purchases to enhance the smell of her home to make sure her cats don't get sick from the scents. Carson doesn't buy candles often, but when she does she doesn't mind splurging if she knows the item is high quality.

B) Ryan: Loves a quality item, but is hesitant to purchase goods that are too expensive. He believes that an item can be both high quality and inexpensive. He doesn't care about the aesthetic. All he cares about is whether it is high quality.

C) Danielle: Loves Target runs and somehow always leaves with a candle. At this point, she probably has 30 half-burned ones hidden in her shelves.

D) Kay: Candle connoisseur. Takes her candles very seriously and even has all the tools for snuffing out candles and cutting wicks. Kay only gets the best of the best candles and is willing to pay whatever for it if it means the scents are refined, the wax is of a high caliber, and the aesthetic is spot on.

Who did you pick?

There are a lot of good choices, but I'll argue that one is the best. I believe Carson will have the best alignment with the brand and will be the target customer that we should keep in mind while figuring out how to run our business. While the others are wonderful choices, I think we should be careful of their "wants" when we're starting with limited resources as they are not as closely aligned. If we try to make all of them happy we may lose focus of our vision, struggle with pricing, etc.

Knowing your customer helps you:

• Create products or services that solve their problems

• Craft messages that speak to their needs and desires

• Choose the right channels to reach them efficiently

• Build loyalty by delivering exactly what they want

• Creates more opportunity for community and engagement

  
  

Without this clarity, marketing becomes guesswork and it doesn't need to be.

What Is a Customer Avatar?

A customer avatar is a detailed profile of your ideal customer. It goes beyond basic demographics like age or gender. It includes their interests, challenges, buying habits, and even their values. Imagine you're a detective and you're trying to find all the details to build a fictional person who perfectly represents the group of people most likely to buy from you.

Here’s what a customer avatar might include:

• Age, gender, location

• Job title or role

• Income level

• Hobbies and interests

• Biggest challenges or pain points

• Goals and motivations

• Where they spend time online or offline

• How they prefer to shop or consume information

  
  

This profile guides every marketing decision you make.

How to Create Your Customer Avatar

Start with research. If you already have customers, talk to them. Ask questions about why they chose your product, what problems it solved, and what they like or dislike. If you’re just starting, look at competitors’ customers or use online tools to gather data.

Follow these steps:

1. Gather demographic data

   Use surveys, social media insights, or market reports to find out basic info like age, gender, and location.

   
   

2. Understand their problems and goals

   What keeps them up at night? What do they want to achieve? This helps you position your product as a solution.

   
   

3. Identify their buying behavior

   Do they research extensively before buying? Are they price-sensitive? Do they prefer online shopping or in-store?

   
   

4. Find where they hang out

   Which websites, forums, or communities do they visit? What social media platforms do they use?

   
   

5. Create a detailed profile

   Write a paragraph or two describing your ideal customer as if they were a real person. Give them a name, a job, and a story.

Example of a Customer Avatar

Let’s go back to our friend Carson. Your customer avatar might look like this:

• Name: Carson

• Age: 30

• Location: Urban area

• Job: Marketing manager

• Income: $60,000/year

• Interests: Cats, healthy eating, exploring the community

• Challenges: Struggles to find products that will make her house smell wonderful without potential health concerns to her cats

• Goals: Wants to feel at ease when people come over knowing that her place smells heavenly

• Shopping habits: Prefers mobile apps like Tiktok and Instagram, reads reviews before buying, values expert advice, occasionally goes to farmers markets

  
  

With Carson in mind, you can tailor your marketing messages to address her specific challenges and goals.

How to Use Your Customer Avatar to Make Them Happy

Once you know who your customer is, focus on delivering value that matches their needs. Here’s how:

• Speak their language

Use words and phrases they relate to. If Carson feels overwhelmed by all the candle options on the market, your messaging should be clear, simple, and supportive.

• Offer solutions to their problems

Create products, services, or content that directly address their pain points. For Carson, that could be a simply labeled "cat-safe" candle.

• Choose the right channels

Reach them where they spend time. If Carson is on Tiktok, consider creating a Tiktok channel or asking someone to review your candle on Tiktok.

• Build trust and loyalty

Share testimonials, pretty pictures, and useful tips. Show that you understand and care about their health and their home.

• Ask for feedback

Keep learning from your customers. Their needs may change, and staying connected helps you adapt.

Example in Action

If I want to advertise your product to Carson, I might make a Tiktok/Instagram/Youtube Short video with a trending audio like: "Now I want to sit back and relax, when all of a sudden I hear this agitating grating voice." The video would show a girl sitting down on her couch with her cats near her. She lights a candle and then the camera zooms into her eye and transitions into a simple screenshot of a warning label showing that candles aren't pet safe. Then, we add a calming audio that represents our candle brand and transition back to the video of the girl on the couch with her cats. We blow out the candle and replace it with our candle. We can either do a voice over, or do a written caption on the video that says, "[Redefine your Worth's Candles] use local beeswax, are cat-safe, and smell divine!"

Then we have a caption like: "✨🎀✨I'm just a girl. I want it to smell good in here✨🎀✨ What's your go-to fall smell?"

Final Thoughts

Keep it simple and focus on pleasing the people who are on the same wavelength as you and your product. Keep snowballing your small wins and over time you'll find demand for your product growing with you.