Marketing personas are fiction. But all good fiction is based on slices of reality, and when you pull relevant research to bring your personas to life, the potential results are significant.

Fifty-six percent of companies report higher-quality leads due to using personas, and 36% say they contributed to shorter sales cycles. And if that wasn’t enough to show the power of personas, consider that 96% of companies that exceed their lead-generation and revenue goals use … you guessed it, personas.

What is a buyer persona?

A buyer’s persona is similar to your ideal customer profiles but zoomed in on a particular individual at the company. It helps you understand a person’s exact needs, preferences and behaviors. The purpose of a persona is to gather insights and motivations about the decision-making process of your different customer types so you can use them to create customized marketing strategies and get better results.

Creating a persona (step by step)

Creating buyer personas can seem overwhelming. After all, you likely have many target audiences, and the thought of creating personas for them all can feel overwhelming.

Persona customers typically fall into the following categories.

  1. Decision maker: This is the person who owns the budget approval.
  2. Influencer: This is the person who recommends the solution.
  3. User: This is the person who actually uses the product or service.

Select the most relevant three to five personas to target and then use the following steps to create a profile for each.

1. Conduct customer persona research

The research phase is about learning more about specific groups of buyers so you can do a better job of helping them. Details you’ll collect can include demographics, challenges, and more. A few places to gather this information are:

  • Survey your existing customers and prospects
  • Interview your sales team
  • Review internal  databases
  • Tap into outside research

With this information in hand, you’re ready for the next step, which is drafting the persona profile.

2. Create a persona profile

Ready to create your first buyer persona profile? Great! Here are some sections to consider including:

  • Background
  • Demographics
  • Challenges and frustrations
  • Information consumption habits
  • How you can help

3. Iterate and refine

Once you create your buyer’s personas, remember it’s not a set-it-and-forget-it task. You’ll want to revisit them periodically, validate the information and iterate as needed.

Want to learn more? Read the full blog on our partner Act-On’s website.

Need help building your buyer personas? Contact us today to learn how Goose Digital can help.