As digital copywriters, we know the power of the written word.
But, sometimes you sit down to create your own marketing materials only to realize… you have no idea what to write!
What should you cover in your next blog post?
What should your next email be about?
What should you pitch as an article to build authority?
It’s really common for freelancers to struggle to find the time to create their own marketing assets. And, part of the reason is because there’s one key ingredient many of us overlook when creating our marketing — we fail to think about our ideal buyer.
Defining Your Ideal Client’s Persona
You may already know how crucial it is, when working for clients, to have a clear buyer’s persona.
However, it’s one of those things we often forget to create for ourselves.
Who is the right person for your web-writing services? How would you define and describe that person?
So, let’s take a look at what should be in your ideal client persona and what shouldn’t be… and, this may come as a surprise, but your current client list doesn’t matter when doing this exercise. I’ll explain why in a minute, but first… let’s get started on your buyer’s persona.
How to Get Started
You might have a simple idea of your ideal buyer. You might help businesses over a certain size. And, let’s say you write for e-commerce companies.
This is only a starting point.
The next step for you is to define who you need to reach within any company you contact. The company doesn’t read your marketing materials or go looking for a web writer to hire… a person does.
So, the first question to answer is…
Who Is That Person?
To figure that out… first, define the types of products or services you want to write about. This could be anything from software to supplements to coaching to industrial machinery.
Once you know the kinds of things you want to write about, focus on defining the companies you want to write for… the ones who offer those products and services. But, get specific…
Do you have a dream client? Do you know the size of the company? The number of employees or the yearly revenue?
Write your answers to these questions down. These are “get started” questions. You can always change your mind or focus later.
Now you know the kind of company (or solopreneur) you want to write for. So far, so good. Next, it’s time to define the people you want to talk with.
Ask yourself:
- What is the job title of the person who hires me?
- What is the age of the person?
- Does this person have final say, or do they need to consult with someone else before hiring?
Go Deeper
Once you have a starting point, the next step is to dig deeper.
You want to go beyond demographics.
Add information related to the business:
- Business type (online, brick and mortar, a mix)
- Business niche (info product, industrial manufacturing, service providers, doctors, etc.)
- Business know-how (newbies, startups, established, corporate)
Think about the clients you’ve already worked with. Do you want to work with similar clients? Or, are you interested in working with someone different?
Next, ask yourself about the client as a person.
- What publications does that person read?
- What are the most common themes or topics they’re interested in?
- What keeps this person up at night?
These will help you discover your ideal buyer’s top concerns.
Define Your Boundaries
When defining your ideal client’s persona, add details about how you want to work with someone, as well.
Ask yourself questions like:
- Do I want to work with someone who wants to work on weekends?
- Do I prefer meetings scheduled in the evenings?
- Do I not want to receive messages outside of “normal” 9-to-5 hours?
- Do I prefer solo business owners or a corporate structure?
Once you’ve answered these types of questions, you’ll have a clearer idea of who is a best fit for you.
For example, let’s say you enjoy working with clients that have an accounting department. You’ve been frustrated in the past with the solo business owners who never seem to pay on time.
Then, one of your boundaries (and part of an ideal client’s persona description) may be someone who works for (or runs) a company big enough to have an accounting department.
What Not to Include in Your Ideal Client Description
Including a wide range of demographics or irrelevant information in your persona won’t help you speak directly to your ideal person. You can include a lot of information, but be sure it’s not too broad.
For example, stating you serve women-owned businesses is very broad.
Do you help new business owners? Only established people? Only women in a certain niche?
Be sure to be wide enough to have enough clients to reach out to, but narrow enough that you can create material that speaks directly to their concerns.
If you know you serve business owners, who are women, who sell jewelry, and have at least $2,000 a month in sales, you’ve got a lot of potential people to reach out to… and a lot of potential topics to talk about in your marketing materials.
You won’t create marketing around:
- How to get started
- How to reach your first $1,000 in sales
- How to set up an ecommerce store for regular sales
Your ideal buyer’s persona has already achieved these topics. They aren’t looking for the beginner information.
They might be interested in a lead magnet or other material around:
- Creating copy to move your buyers away from Etsy and toward your own storefront
- How to grow past the $2,000/month plateau
- How to create repeat customers on autopilot with regular newsletters
Your Current Client List Doesn’t Matter
Many writers, when they first start out, gain experience in several niches, working on several different kinds of projects. They write websites, case studies, blog posts, and social media… and they work for big companies, small companies, and solopreneurs.
It doesn’t matter who you’ve served in the past. Who is it you want to attract more of in the future?
If you continue to create marketing material for those people who aren’t a best fit for you, you’ll continue to bring in the wrong clients. If you continue writing about any and every topic, instead of focusing on what your ideal client needs and wants, your message gets lost and confused.
You may have only written one email newsletter. If you really enjoyed the project and want more work like that, you want to continue to define your ideal buyer as someone who would benefit from newsletters.
Choose who you want to work with going forward, not based on your past client list.
With a defined buyer, you can start to grow your business faster, create your marketing materials more easily, and save yourself from attracting the wrong type of buyers.
