If I had a pound for every time a woman business owner told me “my product is for everyone”, I’d have retired by now. With a villa. And a dog that someone else walks.
I get it. When you’re trying to build a business, the idea of narrowing down who you work with feels completely bonkers. Why would you LIMIT your potential customers? Surely the more people you try to reach, the more money you’ll make?
Except that’s not how it works. Not even a little bit.
Why “Everyone” Is Actually No One
When you try to speak to everyone, you end up speaking to no one. Your marketing becomes vanilla. Your message becomes wishy-washy. And the people who WOULD have been perfect for you scroll right past because nothing you’re saying resonates with them specifically.
Think about it from the other side. When you’re looking for help with something – a hairdresser, a coach, someone to fix your boiler – do you want the person who says “I do a bit of everything for anyone”? Or do you want the person who says “I specialise in exactly what you need”?
Exactly.
The Clients Who Make You Want To Hide Under The Duvet
If you’ve been in business for a while, you’ll know what good business looks like and what bad business looks like. You’ll have people you pray don’t turn up again. Those customers who haggle on price, who are never satisfied, who drain every last drop of energy out of you.
And then you’ll have the other ones. The ones who say “oh, I didn’t expect it to be that cheap – you’re wonderful!” The ones who refer their friends. The ones who make you remember why you started this in the first place.
Your ideal customer is the second lot. And the sooner you work out exactly who they are, the sooner you can go and find more of them.
How I Found My People
When I was running my marketing consultancy, I worked with anyone who’d pay me. Men, women, big businesses, tiny businesses. And I noticed something – the women business owners were the ones I really enjoyed working with. They got me excited. I got great results for them. And I understood them because I AM one.
So I started saying no to businesses that didn’t feel like a good fit, and eventually I just said: I work with women business owners. Full stop.
That was scary. But it was also the best decision I ever made. Because when you get specific about who you help, those people find you. Word gets around. The right people gravitate towards you.
Three Questions To Find Your Ideal Customer
- Who do you get the best results for? Not who pays the most – who actually gets the best outcomes from working with you?
- Who do you enjoy working with most? When do you feel that flow, that joy, that “I love my job” feeling?
- Who would you work with all day every day if you could? Picture that person. That’s your ideal customer.
Once you know who they are, everything else gets easier. Your marketing gets sharper. Your message gets clearer. Your prices go up because you’re attracting people who value what you do. And you stop wasting time on people who were never right for you in the first place.
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