vickioneill

From this episode:

​

​

You know personas are fake, right? 

​

And by fake I mean not real people. Personas are a representation of and ideal target customer segment and are created as a way to create targeted messages that will have better engagement and higher conversion rates.  

​

Question:  When you ​receive an email that has your first name in the subject line, as the intro and/or in the body of the message, does it seem more like that email was written specifically for you? Yes! That's part of what personas are - just taking it to a deeper level. 

​

Why is it important for Marketing and Sales to create personas together?

1. A persona eventually becomes a customer

2. When the persona first sees and engages with a brand, that's Marketing's content and message

3. As a persona goes along the customer journey, they have the same expectation on what they were told - and how they are 'qualified' by marketing before handing off to sales

4. Sales converts them to a customer

5. The expectations at the beginning need to match what they buy - Marketing and Sales need to be involved
    

Think about it....Wouldn't it be easier for everyone involved was aligned on WHO the prospect is talking to regardless of where they are in the buying process? And understand what information resonates with them? And HOW they want to be communicated to so the relevant content can be shared with them with intent to convert more to a sale?

​

Great starting points for creating customer personas:

1. Start with your existing customers. It's easier to start with what you know vs what you don't know

2. Conduct interviews over the phone or in person vs survey (live conversations are just better conversations)

3. Use your website form fields to collect one additional piece of data about your target audience. ​

4. Pair a marketing person with a sales person so there can be high value conversations that lead to change

​

Once personas are in place, the benefits far outweigh the current state. Here's why:

1. Removing the guesswork of marketing not providing the most relevant content

2. Sales not receiving qualified leads

3. No more finger pointing, i.e. 'Sales isn't closing the leads we're sending' or marketing isn't giving us the leads or content we can use'. 
    

Final thought:

When you have a more targeted and synergistic approach to marketing and sales, it creates better alignment internally for your teams and externally to your prospects and customers. 

​

This process isn't going to be all rainbows and unicorns or everyone sitting around singing kumbaya but it will create a more streamlined approach to aligning marketing and sales. 

​

Just remember that a well-thought out marketing and sales plan will effectively drive the sales you want.

​

If you want me to help you create Personas, click here for more information and to apply.