Knowing Your Customer Starts with Talking to Real People
If you’ve spent any time watching marketing videos, listening to podcasts, or researching how to grow your business, you’ve probably come across the concept of an "ideal customer persona" or ICP. The concept sounds logical: create a detailed profile of your perfect customer, mapping out their demographics, behaviors, and pain points so you can market to them effectively.
But here’s the thing: many ICPs are based on guesswork rather than reality.
A lot of marketing advice out there tells business owners to fill out worksheets or attend workshops where they essentially imagine their ideal customer. But when that "perfect" person doesn’t actually show up in the real world, it can lead to frustration, wasted marketing spend, and messaging that doesn’t connect with anyone.
Why the "Ideal Customer" Approach Often Falls Short
Marketing works best when it’s built around real people. If you create a persona before ever talking to potential customers, you risk making assumptions that don’t reflect actual needs. It’s like saying:
"Here’s the type of person I want to sell to. Now, let’s hope they exist and are looking for exactly what I offer."
In reality, the people who are most interested in your product or service might have different needs or priorities than you initially expected. And that’s okay! Marketing isn’t about finding a perfect match, it’s about understanding how you can help real people in meaningful ways.
How to Truly Understand Your Customers
The best way to get clear on your audience isn’t by filling out worksheets, it’s by having conversations. Here’s how you can start gathering real insights:
Customer Interviews: Talk to past, current, or potential customers. Ask open-ended questions about their challenges, decision-making process, and what solutions they’re currently using. Don’t go in with any biases, keep an open mind and listen closely to their answers.
Surveys: If you have access to a larger audience, send out a survey to identify patterns and trends. A well-designed survey with a sufficient number of answers can reveal correlations and relationships between data points that otherwise wouldn’t be obvious or expected.
Social Listening: Observe discussions happening in online communities, social media, and industry forums. Pay attention to patterns and common challenges or praises for your products / services.
Sales & Support Calls: If you or your team regularly interact with customers, pay attention to recurring questions and concerns.
Industry Networking: Join conversations with your target audience at events, webinars, or even on LinkedIn.
If you’re just starting out and don’t have customers yet, start with a hypothesis about who might benefit from your offer, considering factors like age, profession, income, or location. Then, go talk to people who fit that description. You’ll quickly learn whether you’re on the right track and uncover valuable insights you wouldn’t have discovered on your own.
Real Conversations Lead to Smarter Marketing
You don’t need a perfect customer persona to start marketing. You just need to listen, learn, and adapt. The more you engage with real people, the more refined your understanding of your audience will become.
No worksheet, AI tool, or brainstorming session can replace genuine human conversations.
By focusing on real people and their actual challenges, your marketing will feel more natural, connect more effectively, and even lead to new opportunities you hadn’t considered before. So instead of chasing the "perfect" customer, start listening to the real ones and let your marketing evolve from there.
