by Areti Vassou
A customer persona is a fictional representation of a typical or ideal customer that a business may target with its products or services. It is a detailed profile that describes the characteristics, preferences, behaviors, and needs of a particular type of customer.
Customer personas are created through research and analysis of customer data, such as demographics, psychographics, purchasing behavior, and other relevant information. The persona may include information such as age, gender, income, interests, motivations, challenges, goals, and more.
By understanding their customers’ personas, businesses can create more effective marketing strategies, design better products and services, and improve the overall customer experience. Personas can help businesses better understand their target audience and tailor their communication and messaging to resonate with their customers’ needs and preferences.
Customer Personas Survey
In case you are a beginner and have zero experience in creating a Customer Personas Survey, use this list of questions. By answering these questions, you can develop customer personas that are based on data and insights, which can help you create products and services that meet their needs and tailor your marketing efforts to reach them more effectively.
- Demographics: What is their age range, gender, income level, education level, and marital status?
- Interests: What are their hobbies, interests, and favorite pastimes?
- Behaviors: What are their buying habits? How do they prefer to purchase products or services? Where do they shop? How frequently do they shop?
- Pain points: What are their biggest challenges or pain points? What problems are they trying to solve?
- Motivations: What motivates them to make a purchase? What are their goals or aspirations?
- Influencers: Who or what influences their purchasing decisions? Is it family, friends, online reviews, or advertising?
- Communication preferences: What channels do they prefer to communicate through? Is it email, social media, or phone?
- Customer journey: What are the key touchpoints in their customer journey? From awareness to purchase and post-purchase, what are their behaviors and preferences at each stage?
Free Survey Questionnaire
We are aware that is not easy to hire a big marketing company to run a survey for your business idea but they are plenty of other ways to gather all the data you need. Here is a survey questionnaire that you can use to develop customer personas among friends:
- What is your age?
- What is your gender?
- What is your highest level of education?
- What is your current occupation?
- What is your current income level?
- Are you married or single?
- Do you have any children?
- What are your hobbies and interests?
- What social media platforms do you use most frequently?
- What are your favorite brands and why?
- How often do you make online purchases?
- How do you prefer to pay for your online purchases?
- What factors are most important to you when making a purchase?
- What is your preferred method of communication with brands?
- What are some challenges or pain points you experience when making a purchase online?
- What motivates you to make a purchase online?
- What is your preferred shopping method?
- What influences your purchasing decisions?
- How do you prefer to receive marketing communications from brands?
- What are your expectations from a brand’s customer service?
By gathering responses to these questions from your friends, you can start to develop customer personas based on common characteristics, interests, behaviors, and preferences. This can help you understand your target audience better and tailor your products or services to meet their needs. Of course, you can form the questions according to your idea, product, service, or app.
Customer Personas Accuracy
The accuracy of customer personas can vary depending on the quality of data used to create them and the effectiveness of the research methods used. Customer personas are developed by gathering data and insights about a target audience, such as demographic information, behavior patterns, and preferences.
To ensure the accuracy of customer personas, it is important to use reliable sources of data, such as surveys, customer interviews, and website analytics. The data should also be analyzed carefully to identify trends and patterns that are representative of the target audience.
However, it’s important to note that customer personas are still a representation of a group of people, and not every individual within that group will fit the persona perfectly. Therefore, it’s important to use customer personas as a guide rather than a strict rule. As new data becomes available or the target audience changes, the personas may need to be updated to maintain their accuracy.
About Online Purchasing Personas
Online purchasing personas refer to the different types of individuals who engage in online shopping and have distinct behavior patterns and preferences when it comes to purchasing products or services online.
These personas can help businesses understand their customers’ needs, preferences, and motivations, which can help them create more effective online marketing and sales strategies. The main 4 online purchasing personas are Competitive, Spontaneous, Humanistic, and Methodical.
Competitive Personas
Competitive personas are driven by a desire to win and be the best. They are likely to compare prices, read product reviews, and make decisions based on value and quality. To appeal to competitive personas, businesses can highlight their unique selling points and emphasize how their products or services are superior to their competitors.
Spontaneous Personas
Spontaneous personas are impulsive buyers who make quick decisions based on their emotions and desires. They are likely to respond to visual cues such as product images and videos, and may be influenced by discounts and limited-time offers. To appeal to spontaneous personas, businesses can create compelling visual content and offer promotions that create a sense of urgency.
Humanistic Personas
Humanistic personas are motivated by a desire to help others and make a positive impact. They are likely to be loyal to brands that align with their values and support social causes. To appeal to humanistic personas, businesses can emphasize their corporate social responsibility efforts and highlight how their products or services contribute to a better world.
Methodical Personas
Methodical personas are detail-oriented and focused on getting the best possible outcome. They are likely to research extensively, compare features and benefits, and make informed decisions. To appeal to methodical personas, businesses can provide detailed product information, offer clear pricing and shipping policies, and provide excellent customer support.
Buyer Personas VS Customer Personas
Buyer personas and customer personas are similar concepts, but they have slightly different focuses. Buyer personas are focused on understanding potential customers’ needs and preferences in order to acquire them, while customer personas are focused on understanding the behavior and preferences of customers after they have made a purchase in order to retain and nurture them.
A buyer persona is a fictional representation of a business’s ideal customer based on research and data. It typically includes demographic information such as age, gender, location, and income, as well as behavior patterns, interests, and motivations. The purpose of a buyer persona is to help businesses understand their customers’ needs, preferences, and pain points, and to create targeted marketing and sales strategies that address those needs.
A customer persona, on the other hand, is a similar concept but focuses more on the behavior and preferences of customers after they have made a purchase. It is a representation of the different types of individuals who engage with a business after becoming customers, and it can help businesses understand how to retain and nurture those customers over time. A customer persona may include information about customers’ usage patterns, feedback, loyalty, and advocacy.
Both types of personas can be useful for businesses in developing effective marketing and sales strategies that cater to their target audience.
Do you want to start a new business? Then this useful guide is a must-read!
