When Hermes started out in 1837 by producing bespoke leather saddles and harnesses to a select group of affluent riders they quickly realized that their customers wanted more. Hermes listened and by fulfilling their clients needs became a global fashion icon, while staying true to their heritage.
Just like Hermes, your journey to consistently attracting elite clients starts with getting absolutely clear on who your ideal client avatar is and knowing the unique value you provide.
“When you speak to everyone, you speak to no one.” And, Hermes is not talking to everyone.
All your branding and marketing decisions from your offers and website content to social media presence will be based on who your ideal client is and how you choose to serve them.
“Your Brand Message Is Exceptional When Your Ideal Client Feels Understood And Heard By You.”
The process of identifying your ideal client actually starts with you!
When you ask yourself these questions:
What business are you in and why?
What are your talents, abilities and unique brand story?
How does what you offer impact your clients’ lives?
You get really clear about you and the unique value you bring to the lives of your clients. Then focus on your ideal client.
The key question we ask our clients is “If I could work with anyone, who would that be?”
The same way you would not invite people who you don’t like to your home you can choose who you invite to your business!
Not everyone is your ideal client.
You can choose people who resonate with your values and qualities, people who appreciate you and what you provide and can invest in what you offer. People who you truly enjoy working with.
Many business owners never take the time to reflect on these questions and end up attracting their clients by default.
To start crafting your ideal client persona, you need two kinds of data:
- Demographics – Who is your ideal client as a person?
What gender, age? Marital status? Where do they live? Do they have kids? Are they businesses or individuals? Their education, income level, and lifestyle.
- Psychographics – What are their goals? What do they struggle with and what do they value?
What stage of life are they in and what changes are happening in their lives right now?
This information will determine where you network, what events you attend, what platforms you need, and where you advertise to be in the proximity to your ideal client.
When we work on our clients’ brand DNA we focus on 6 key questions. Here’s an example of our own LDV Elite Client Avatar:
- Who is the LDV Elite Avatar Persona?
Luxury Business Owner 45+, Married, Home Owner, Already Successful, Business Is Their Passion, Have More Potential Than They Are Currently Manifesting, Coachable, Spiritual.
We have gone through the same detail in answering these other questions:
- What are the problems that you help your clients solve?
- What pain are these problems causing your client?
- What is your uniqueness?
- What are the payoffs of working with you?
- What is your unique message?
When you know your clients intimately you attract them consistently.
Completing your buyer persona is the first step in building a distinctive brand setting you apart from your competition.
We invite you to follow this example and create your own ideal client persona.
This process is truly essential as luxury and quality mean different things to different people in different geographies. What luxury means to someone in the oil industry in Oklahoma City is different from an investment banker in NY or an architect in Phoenix.
While narrowing your target market might seem counterintuitive, it actually increases your brand’s exposure to those that matter, makes your message clearer, and positions you as an expert to your target audience.
This elevated level of clarity will help you with creating new offers, website look, content, blogs, and social media posts to determine how to elevate your brand image and communication to this new persona.
Collecting the same information on your current clients will help you understand them more and discover how you can serve them even better.
You will also start to see your ideal clients recognize themselves as the ones you are speaking to in all your messaging.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Renia M. Orr – a business coach, brand strategist and the owner of LDVElite.com with over 30 years of experience in the luxury market. Her purpose is to help business owners build highly profitable businesses and inspire personal growth.
She is a speaker for Fortune 500 companies, appearing on NBC TV and other television programming. Renia was born and educated in Warsaw Poland where she received her MBA in Management. She now lives in Palm Beach with her husband Sean and a beautiful Havanese, Dolce.
