What Happens When You Imagine Your Ideal Client?
Crafting a Brand Specific Avatar for your Equine Business is Guaranteed to Attract Customers
Who’s your ideal client?
Do you have one?
Maybe you didn’t know you needed one.
Who is your equine business aimed at? “Everyone! My business is for anyone who will buy my stuff.” I hear you. I do. But the problem is...If you market to EVERYONE, you appeal to NO ONE. And, I know that’s not the goal of your business.
Before moving on, let’s back up a step and make sure you have identified your business goals. If you haven’t and you need help coming up with a marketing strategy read this to get your plan started now. Creating your ideal client profile will be easier once you have your marketing strategy nailed down.
Ok, so my BIG QUESTION to you is, WHO would you like to see walking through the doors of your business? Maybe you don’t have a storefront and you work solely online or in person… WHO would you like to see book your services?
After all, isn’t your ideal client the reason why you started your business in the first place?
Go back with me… it was noon on a Sunday. Boy howdy! The Florida sun scorched the dirt beneath your feet. You went to check on your herd as they are not fans of the July heat. As you expected, they hardly ate their food or drank their water. A common behavior this time of year. With your husband on duty and the kids sick with the stomach flu, now was NOT the time for colic.
Time to add electrolyte to their water before things get worse. As you walked into the hay shed you tried to remember how many tubes of Banamine paste you had in the fridge. Five tubes. Awesome.
Now, where’s the electrolyte? Didn’t you just buy a new bucket? Arg… none anywhere.
Sunday... The feed stores were closed. Sigh. Such a pain.
At that exact moment, you thought to yourself — I need an app to help me stay organized with all my horse products. Vet appointments, medical history, and feed supplies. BOOM. Right there, in your hay barn, your equine business started. Friends, neighbors… mom’s like you. Horse owners with no extra time. This app would revolutionize their lives.
Fast forward. You created your app and got it on the app store. Amazing stock horse images from a professional equestrian photographer fill your files. YES! Your equine marketing strategy is on point.
One of your favorite photos, it gives you goosebumps. A cowboy at sunset galloping across the Wyoming tundra. GORGEOUS.
You run ads on Facebook and Instagram and pin a ton on Pinterest.
But, nobody is buying your app. NOBODY.
How is that possible? You did the market research. You ran surveys. You asked your friends and neighbors. What’s wrong?
That night while talking through the problem with your husband, you opened up one of your Facebook ads. “Look at these pictures. They are brilliant. What’s the problem?”
Your husband leans over, takes a peek. “Welp, if you want a 50-year-old cowboy on the range to buy your app, then you’re golden.”
This, my friends, is WHY YOU MUST CREATE AN IDEAL CUSTOMER AVATAR.
Who is My Ideal Client?
I know you are wondering … how do I create my ideal client profile? Let’s use the app designer’s product for the sake of clarity and figure out her ideal client. Start with demographics. WHO is the app designer selling to? What’s their: age, gender, occupation, education, marital status, home ownership, etc.
Be specific.
A 35-45-year-old woman. Married for 15 years. With 3 children under 10. She has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida in business management. Before having kids, she worked as a marketing rep for Publix.
Her name is Amanda. She started riding horses when she was 5 years old at her grandma’s farm in Tallahassee. She spent her summers with grandma. Learning everything she needed to know about horses and baking.
Amanda and her husband own a small farm in Lake County with room to breathe. They make enough money to live comfortably. Nine horses, four dogs, a grouchy old cat, and a handful of chickens. Amanda drives a white minivan and her husband drives a dodge truck.
What About Her Thoughts and Aspirations?
Now, we know WHO Amanda is. We also need to know WHAT she thinks and feels. We need to know her psychographics — her values, behaviors, personal traits, beliefs, and hobbies.
Amanda loves being a mom. She prides herself at being organized and in tune with her family’s needs. Mom life ain’t easy, but she has a system that helps her stay on top of things.
Her best “day in the life” is waking up before the sun, and having coffee on the porch. Creating her “To Do” list and planning dinner. Crock Pot Extra Cheesy Mac. The kid’s favorite. Lots of veggies and a big salad. Done.
Amanda loves taking care of the horses early in the morning when the family is still asleep. She has silly nicknames for each of her horses and loves to give them treats. She is systematic as she goes from stall to stall feeding and watering her herd.
The rest of her day continues with the mundane duties of mom life. Laundry, cooking, cleaning. Wrangling the kids with lots of snuggles and giggles in between.
Amanda gives riding lessons to several children in her community. She enjoys teaching her family and students the importance of caring for horses.
On the weekends, if there’s time, Amanda will take a quick trail ride from the back of her property. Embracing the quiet beauty in the woods.
Amanda worries about having enough time in the day to get all her tasks done. She needs a way to be a little more organized when it comes to her horse business. It’s not a huge operation. But, every penny counts.
She has contemplated cutting out the riding lessons, as that would free up some time. But, she clears an extra $1000 a month which she puts to an emergency horse care fund. She also uses some of the money to keep the barn up and running.
Amanda doesn’t want a full time or even a part-time job. But, being able to contribute to the family’s needs is important to her.
Voila — A Specifically Designed Avatar
Now you have A VERY specific ideal customer description. Time to rework your entire marketing strategy based on Amanda. Remember the stock photos you purchased? Talk to your professional horse photographer and tell her exactly what kind of horse images you need. Better yet, set up a custom equine branding photography session to create PRECISELY what you are looking for.
I know you are thinking “Whoa… that’s super-specific. Does my customer profile need to be that concise?” It sure does. And here’s WHY. Your job is to meet the needs of your customers. You rely on your customers so you know what products to offer. Or what direction your business should take. How can you make those decisions if you don’t know what’s needed? How can you pinpoint who’s going to love your products? Or value the services you provide?
Do I Really Need to Narrow My Customer Base?
The BIGGEST SECRET IN BUSINESS is to design a product in such a way, your buyer feels it was made only for them. Honestly, the more focused you are, the better chance your business will have at success.
When people see your brand-specific ads, they will know WHAT you are selling and HOW you will make their life better. BECAUSE YOUR NUMBER ONE GOAL IS TO MAKE THEIR LIFE BETTER. They will see the VALUE in what you have to offer.
What magic wand solution do you have to solve their biggest problems? In Amanda’s case, she needed the barn inventory app to help her stay organized so she has more time to do what she loves.
In return, what do you get from Amanda?
Loyalty
She’ll continue to buy your products
Recommend your services to her friends
Growing Customer-Brand Relationship
Using an ideal client avatar helps YOU draw in the customers YOU want to communicate with. Learn about their problems. Solve them. And nurture your relationship. Show your clients you are an authority in your industry. Build trust. Help them see they can’t afford to NOT have your product or services.
Take the time to create an ideal client avatar for your equine business today. Watch your business grow by leaps and bounds. Fast Horse Photography is ready to help you with stock or custom photos to bring your avatar to life. Be seen!